Dark Warrior Untamed (8 page)

She’d all but forgotten that weird e-mail. It had been startling at the time, but her worry over Grey digging deeper into her background had shoved it to the back burner. Thank goodness she’d been so careful to keep only work files on the computer.

“And?” she pressed.

Grey’s mouth settled into a deep frown. “From what he could tell, it was sent from my account.”

“What? He didn’t believe that, did he? You were as shocked as I was when you saw it!” It was nothing less than the truth. If he had sent the e-mail, there was no way he would have sicced Sandor on her computer to track it down. Grey looked slightly less grim when she told him so.

“Thank you. I can’t vouch for what Sandor thinks, but I would hope that he’d realize I’m not that dense.”

He leaned back in his chair and stretched his legs. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to watch over your shoulder as you check your e-mail this morning. If our prankster has been at it again, I don’t want to miss seeing the message and how the computer reacts to it.”

Heck, no, she didn’t want him that close! But she couldn’t very well tell him that. “Fine, I’ll get it booted up.”

Her computer was top of the line and normally very fast, but with Grey hovering, it seemed as if her system was running on empty.

“Okay, I’m going online now.”

She kept her eyes on the screen, ignoring the soft sound of Grey breathing behind her. The warmth from his body heated the air between them, making her hyperaware of his proximity. There was no physical contact, but it was if he were pressed against her back. She shivered.

“Everything all right?” he asked, bending down so that his head hovered over her right shoulder.

Maybe he was asking about her, but she deliberately chose to act as if he was talking about her e-mail account.

“So far, so good.”

She entered her password and waited for it to load. As usual, she had more than thirty e-mails waiting for her. She quickly scanned the list of addresses for anything out of the ordinary. There it was in the middle of the list.

She pointed at the unfamiliar sender. “I don’t recognize that address.”

“Is it the same as yesterday?” His breath tickled her neck as he leaned even closer to read the screen.

“I don’t remember, but it’s similar at least.”

“Okay.” He frowned. “Maybe we should have another pair of eyes to see this. Let me grab Sandor before you open it.”

Grey disappeared down the hallway, returning a moment later with the other Talion. The two men bracketed Piper, hovering over her shoulders. She wished they were overreacting, but they weren’t the kind of men to spook easily.

Grey rested his hand on her shoulder, giving it a slight squeeze. “All right, then. Let’s see what we’ve got.”

She clicked on the email and waited for it to open. At first glance the e-mail looked normal. It even started off with “Hi, Piper.” Then it got strange fast. “Please tell Grey hello for me. I bet he’s standing right there.”

She blinked, trying to make sure she was reading it correctly.

Grey’s reaction was succinct. “Bloody hell!”

Sandor leaned in closer. “Son of a bitch, how could he know that?”

“Grey, how—” she started to ask, but then the screen blanked out again just as it had the day before.

She wove her fingers together into a tight fist as the screen slowly came back into focus. Small beads of light sparkled in random patterns. Despite their innocuous appearance her tension ratcheted up second by second as she waited for the other shoe to drop.

Then it did. The sound on her computer shot to full volume as the small bits of light exploded like fireworks on steroids. The sudden noise made her jump back and bump her chair into Grey. When the last burst of light zoomed across the screen, words appeared as if being written by hand.

“The reckoning draws closer. Watch for a little surprise to arrive, which should be any minute now. It’s only a preview of what’s to come, but I’m sure you’ll find it entertaining. I’d be very careful if I were you.”

A bell rang. At first she thought it was part of the e-mail, but then Piper realized it was someone buzzing at the gate, wanting in.

“Grey, someone just pulled up at the front gate.”

“I’ll handle it. You stay here. Sandor, warn Ranulf and Kerry.”

He took off at a dead run with Sandor right on his heels. Ignoring his commands, Piper swept up her cell phone and followed them out.

Grey glared back at her. “Damn it, Piper. Follow orders. I told you to stay back.”

“And I will. But, Grey, the bell rings in the kitchen, too, which means Hughes is probably already on his
way out there.” She immediately slowed down, heading for a window that would give her a clear view of the front yard.

Grey burst through the front door and sprinted across the lawn to where Hughes was already reaching out to accept a small box from the delivery man. Son of a bitch, he’d never get to them in time. He lengthened his stride, pumping his arms and leaning forward as if that extra inch or two would make all the difference.

As he reached the driveway, he bellowed, “Hughes! Both of you, freeze!”

His order went unheeded as Hughes stepped back through the gate and the driver put his truck in gear and drove off, his haste in doing so probably spurred on by Grey’s crazed appearance. The butler gave Grey a puzzled look but stayed where he was.

With no time to waste on explanations, Grey jerked the box away from the butler and took off for the closest open area, the Dame’s rose garden.

Once he was safely away from the house, he set the box down and studied it. Even though it was smaller than a shoe box, it could still hold enough explosives to take out the entire neighborhood. That wasn’t going to happen, not on his watch.

It had been awhile since he’d last disarmed explosives, but he’d been trained by the best. He pulled out his pocketknife and knelt down. Easing the blade under the tape, he peeled back the plain brown wrapping. He
wadded the paper up and stuck it in his jacket pocket. So far, so good.

Lifting the lid might trigger the bomb, if that’s even what it was. Ignoring the pounding of his heart, he worked one corner up enough to get a peek inside. His blood ran hot and then ice cold. Dear god, the digital readout showed the countdown was almost over!

He was dimly away of Piper yelling. “Grey, get away from there. Now!”

He dropped the lid and back pedaled away from the package. Piper had been smart enough to keep her distance. As he retreated, he threw up his hands, using every scrap of energy he could muster to build a barrier around the bomb.

“Everybody, get to the other side of the house! That thing’s going to blow!”

Before he could seal the barrier completely, thunder rolled and the earth rippled beneath his feet. The
blast of air flung him upward, tossing him arse over teakettle across the yard.

He slammed into the corner of the house, the impact of the brick exterior rattling his bones and stealing his breath. His last thought as the darkness swallowed him was:
Bugger it, this is really going to hurt.

P
iper’s ears wouldn’t stop ringing—or maybe it was all the sirens pouring into the neighborhood. Police officers swarmed through the gate and over the Dame’s lawn and driveway. Either way, Piper’s head hurt, and she had to shove her hands under her arms to control their shaking.

Ranulf stood nearby with his arms wrapped around Kerry, and the three kids were huddled together, looking a little lost and a whole lot scared. Poor Hughes was being seen to by one of the paramedics. Realizing how close he’d come to being blown to smithereens had understandably left him badly shaken.

After talking to Sean and the other two kids briefly, Sandor moved closer to Piper. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, as if ready to leap into action if only someone could tell him what to do.

He glanced at her before turning back to watch the police. Neither of them could stop looking at the blackened circle in the rose garden. A couple of bushes were damaged, but probably not enough to kill them. It was a stupid thing to be worried about, but thinking about the flowers helped to keep Piper’s mind off of Greyhill
Danby.

From where she stood, all she could see were his feet, and they weren’t moving. At all. Paramedics hovered over him, talking in worried voices and performing first aid. He hadn’t been killed by the explosion. That’s all she knew, and she was terrified for him.

What kind of bastard shipped a bomb? If the delivery truck had been any slower arriving, it could have gone off in heavy traffic. Who knew how many people would have died as collateral damage? Or Hughes—what if he’d still been holding the box? God, she couldn’t bear thinking about it, or how half the time
she
was the one who accepted deliveries. She wiped the tears streaming down her face with the back of her hand.

“Here.” Sandor shoved his handkerchief into her hand. “Are you all right? You weren’t hurt, were you?”

“No. Just rattled by the explosion. Grey warned us in time to avoid any fallout.” She shivered. “I hope he’s all right.”

“We all do.” Sandor settled his leather jacket around Piper’s shoulders.

Then, after checking to see that no one was close by he leaned in close and whispered, “Talions are hard to kill, Piper. Once Kerry can get near him without all these outsiders around, she’ll be able to jump-start the healing process.”

Kerry’s ability to heal was something Piper had only heard about. She wanted to believe that it would help Grey, but he had to stay alive for any kind of healing to take place. And he hadn’t moved in a long, long
time.

The clatter of metal on the asphalt jolted her from her thoughts. Two EMTs were making their way across the yard with a gurney. Either Grey was stable enough to transport or—no, she wasn’t going to go there. With her heart in her throat, she watched the medics gently lift Grey onto the stretcher. It was difficult to read their expressions. Did they always look that grim when working over a patient?

As they started wheeling Grey back in her direction, she finally got a good look at him. The right side of his face was bruised and swollen, and he had a neck brace on. They had him on oxygen, too. Surely that meant he was breathing. Didn’t it?

“Sandor, Grey shouldn’t be alone. I’m going to the hospital with him.”

“Have the police taken your statement yet?”

“No, and I’d rather not talk to them at all.” But she’d have to. There’d be no getting around it.

Sandor pulled out his keys. “Take these and go out the back. My sedan is parked down the hill.”

She handed him his jacket in exchange. “Thanks.”

“Don’t worry. The cops have more than enough to keep them busy, so they probably won’t notice you’re gone for a while. If they ask, I’ll tell them why you left. I can always take you down to the station to make
a formal statement later.”

Once again he checked to make sure they wouldn’t be overheard. “I’d rather go over things with you first anyway, just to get everyone’s stories straight. Tell Grey somebody will be by to check on him when things get wrapped up here.”

“I will. Thanks.”

She made her way to the front door, trying not to draw any attention. Once inside, she picked up her pack and hurried out the back. Just as she slipped through the gate, she spied Lena Wilson getting out of a car and waited for her to cross the street.

The blonde headed right for her. “What’s going on, Piper? Is everyone all right?”

She kept it short. “Someone sent a bomb to the house. Grey Danby was seriously hurt and has been taken to the hospital. Hughes was a bit shaken up, but everyone else is all right. Sandor and the kids were inside with Kerry and Ranulf when the explosion went off, and the house wasn’t damaged.”

Lena seemed to take it all in stride, although her relief that the kids and Sandor were all right was palpable. “Where are you off to now?”

“We thought someone should go to the hospital with Grey. Sandor loaned me his car so he could stay with Kerry and the kids.”

Lena was already hurrying away. “Check in when you know something.”

“Will do,” she promised before running to the car.

•   •   •

Did he really want to open his eyes when he knew a world of pain was waiting for him? Where the hell was he anyway? The last thing he could remember was running … somewhere? But he couldn’t remember being late for anything.

Grey was pretty damn sure that wherever he was smelled suspiciously like a hospital. Then there were all those annoying beeps.

Bracing himself for the worst, Grey gathered up his strength and attempted to open his eyes. He was right. This was definitely a hospital, and unfortunately he was the one hooked up to all those bloody beeping machines.

A feminine silhouette rose into view, blocking out the rest of the room. “Grey? Are you awake?”

He managed a small nod as he tried to focus on the face. Was she a nurse? Squinting, he could make out dark hair with streaks of pink and purple. Her eyes were dark, her expression worried, and her face familiar. Slowly the fog in his mind lifted. Ah, yes, he knew her. Not a nurse after all.

“Grey, it’s me, Piper.”

“I know. What the hell happened?” His words came out in a harsh whisper.

“First, let me tell the nurses you’re awake. Once they’ve checked you over, I’ll fill you in.”

When she walked away, his wrist felt cold. Why had Piper been holding his hand? He missed the soothing warmth of her touch now as pain washed over him in cold waves. His eyes drifted closed again.

“Mr. Danby, can you hear me?”

A disturbingly young man with a stethoscope around his neck smiled down at him. “Glad you could join the party, Mr. Danby. I’m Dr. Gregory. Your friend here has been pretty worried about you.”

Grey sought out Piper, who hovered in the far corner of the small room. He’d rather have her fussing over him than the cheerful but impersonal medical staff crowded around him. He wasn’t up to ordering them to leave him alone, though. Besides, they’d never believe that he didn’t need their help. As a Talion, he’d heal from anything short of a mortal wound, especially if Kerry lent a hand.