Darkest Caress (10 page)

“In a way, yes.”

She swallowed. “And will I have to fight soldiers of this Dark Army?” She didn’t know the first thing about fighting. She’d never even hit anyone before. Not in her entire life. And suddenly she was expected to be a soldier?

Daegan dropped to one knee in front of her. She shrank away, but he didn’t move closer or try to touch her. “You won’t be in combat. I’d never let you endanger yourself that way. Ever.”

Beneath the sickening realization that there might be no way out of this, she heard the words he
hadn’t
said. “Wait. Meaning I won’t, but you will? Is that what you’re saying?”

“I’m a warrior, Liv. All Empowered males are.”

“That’s what you meant when you said you’ve been in the military for most of your life.”

“Yes. We’re elite soldiers. I’ve been training as a warrior since I was a boy, and I’ve fought in more wars than you can name, hunting Dark Army members and the Obsidian Lord all over the world. The last time was in Afghanistan a few months ago, when the Obsidian Lord had turned some Taliban into Dark Army members.”

The staggering implications of it hit Liv like a sledgehammer. It changed her entire understanding of history in one moment. A sudden picture of him engaged in a firefight came to her mind. Explosions burst around him, bullets whizzed through the air. Hot tears burned her eyes. “You’re the leader, aren’t you?” She’d known it. On some level she’d known that from the first time she’d laid eyes on him. The air of command he held was absolute. Unmistakable.

A firm nod. “My official title is Coven Leader.”

So he’d be at the front, right in the thick of the fighting, in whatever form it took. And he’d die in the futile effort of defending the four of them against a whole enemy army. If she was the first of the Lost they’d found in over a half century, she didn’t hold out much hope they’d locate more to help even the odds. Despair rose up, thick enough to choke on. Her eyes stung, a tear rolled down her cheek. She swiped it away angrily.

“Liv…” Daegan reached for her.

She shook her head and bit her lip to keep the sob trapped in her chest. “No, don’t.”

“I have to,” he said softly, gently brushing her tears away with his fingertips. “You’re my mate. I can’t stand to see you hurting and not touch you.”

“How can you just accept that we’re mates? You didn’t even know I existed until a few days ago.”

“Because I feel it in here,” he said, tapping the place over his heart. “And because I understand the way it works between Empowered mates. Fighting this won’t do any good.”

“Well, what if I
can’t
accept it?” Her shoulders jerked and she covered her face with her hands. Damn, no more crying! The last thing she wanted was to appear weak in front of this man or let him know how attached she was to him already.

The next instant, hard arms enveloped her and gathered her up against his muscled torso. Warmth immediately flowed over her, into her trembling muscles. On a ragged sigh, Liv squeezed her eyes shut and wrapped her arms around his strong back, burying her face into his shoulder. He felt so incredible. She might not be able to accept everything he’d told her, but she couldn’t fight this physical part of it any longer. Didn’t want to.

Nothing about this made sense, but she needed his reassurance and the comfort only he could give. He was strong, protective. Her body melted against him.

Daegan made a rough sound and brought her even closer, tightening his arms around her. The bulge of his erection pressed against her hip. A light shudder ripped through him, making her heart squeeze to know she affected him as much as he did her.

Tingles of electricity sparkled at every point of contact between them. Her sadness dimmed as all her senses focused on the man holding her. He smelled so good, felt even better. She wished he didn’t. “I’m scared,” she finally admitted in a whisper.

Daegan stroked his palms over her back. “I know, love. But you’ve got me and the others to look after you now. I swear I’ll never let anything happen to you. You’re safe with me.”

No, she wasn’t. She felt like she was on the verge of losing herself completely. That the Olivia Farrell she’d always known no longer existed. Maybe never had.

The added threat of war sent jagged bolts of fear through her heart. “I’m scared for you too. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” She might not know him very well, but she liked him. Except for going behind her back with the paperwork, he’d been polite and respectful to her. Kind. He’d saved her from Aaron last night, then shielded her. Taken her home, cared for her without expecting anything in return.

And she couldn’t deny the sexual pull between them. Her entire body lit up when he was near. The thought of him wounded or dying made her throat close up.

He hugged her tight. “I’m good at what I do. We all are, and we’ve been continually trained by the best military units in the world throughout our lives. You’ll see.”

But she didn’t
want
to see that, or any of this. Being mated to a warrior while a futile war raged around them? Constantly wondering what was going on and terrified something would happen to him? It was too much for her brain to take in, much less process.

She was drained, yet the steady hum of sexual awareness between them wouldn’t let go. Exhausted as her body was, she wanted him. Needed him on a level she couldn’t begin to understand. Being in his arms like this felt exactly right. Scarily right. She wanted more. Needed to feel his naked skin against hers, to feel his weight pinning her to the bed while he filled her empty body and took away the horrible uncertainty and hunger warring inside her.

Warm fingers stroked the hair away from the side of her face. So gentle, despite the immense power in the muscles surrounding her. She turned toward his hand, leaning into his touch.

Daegan stilled, and the heat smoldering inside her began to build. Her fingers crept up his neck to slide into his hair, thick and soft against her skin.

She murmured in pleasure as the strands slid between her hands. “I can’t stay away from you.”

“Liv,” he whispered, capturing her face between his hands to raise her head until she met his eyes. So beautiful, surrounded by the thick fringe of black lashes that made the hue even more startling. His gaze dipped down to her mouth for a moment, and she felt their touch deep in the pit of her belly.

A delicious curl of warmth spread through her abdomen. She wanted this. Wanted him.

He looked into her eyes, thumbs wiping away the last of her tears. “Come here,” he murmured, leaning down to kiss her.

Liv gasped, tightening her fingers in his hair when his lips touched hers. The exquisite gentleness of the kiss turned her inside out, made her press her body harder against him. Daegan maintained his hold on her, refusing to let her deepen the kiss while he brushed his mouth over hers, nibbling lightly at the corners.

Flames licked across her skin wherever his lips touched. She whimpered and pushed up toward him, needing more, needing it harder. Her mouth opened beneath his, a quiet moan spilling free at the tender stroke of his tongue against her lips. She met it eagerly, sliding her tongue over his, exploring and pleasing herself. He tasted faintly of cinnamon, and he definitely knew how to kiss a woman. Each velvet caress of his tongue made the muscles in her core clench around the aching void of need until she wanted to crawl inside him. His hands cradled her face almost lovingly, his thumbs slowly skimming over her cheekbones while he kissed her until she was shaking.

But before she could get enough he placed a slow, lingering kiss against her parted lips then leaned back.

Liv pulled at his head and rose up blindly, reaching for him. She was so hungry for him. Wanted to rip off their clothes, to feel his naked skin against hers. Her breasts tingled, her body ached to be touched.

Daegan shook his head, gently caged her in his arms. “Shh, I know, love. But not here,” he whispered roughly against her temple, stroking her hair, her back.

Breathing fast, heart pounding, Liv struggled to control her body’s reaction. She held onto his shoulders and opened her eyes, feeling like he’d left her dangling at the rim of a cliff.

“I know,” he soothed when she opened her mouth to protest.

She felt like crying again. Her body was on edge, miserable. It hurt to pull away from him.

Daegan kissed her temple, her cheek. “But unless you want me to take you here and now, we’d better wait until we have some privacy.” The steely erection digging into her and the gravel in his voice told her he was suffering too.

With effort, she released her hold on his shoulders to climb off his lap. Her muscles were both stiff and weak at the same time. God, she’d almost lost control.

On unsteady legs she stood, looking back up at the house. Heat suffused her face. She’d been ready to strip naked and have sex with him here in the middle of the day, right out in the open where anyone could have seen them. And she wouldn’t have cared one bit. The knowledge jarred her.

“You must be tired,” he said.

Tired didn’t begin to cover it. “Yes.”

“Get some sleep. You’re welcome to stay here if you want. There’re fresh sheets on the bed in the master suite.”

His bed. She remembered the massive walnut sleigh bed anchored against the far wall of the room. Had even dreamed about being pinned beneath him in it. The thought of sliding into it to wait for him made her exhausted body surge back to tingling life. “I think I’d better go home for awhile.”

She didn’t miss the flicker of disappointment in his eyes as he tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “Okay. You know where I am if you need me.”

A wave of lust hit her at the words, but she ruthlessly pushed it away. She stepped back and took a deep breath, her mind in turmoil. The whole “mate” thing was a mystery to her, but she didn’t have the energy to ask him about it right now. There were a million other questions she wanted answered, and they would have to wait. She couldn’t think around him. She needed some space.

“Bye.” Before he could answer she whirled on her heel and rushed back up the grassy slope, leaving him standing at the cliff’s edge.

Cade caught a whiff of Liv’s scent a split second after she opened the exterior door to the patio. He cursed under his breath and slammed the gun cabinet door shut, trying to appear casual as her footsteps approached. Tough to do when he had to hide a stockpile of firearms and explosives, but he didn’t want to scare her more by letting her see them.

The heavy steel door groaned open. Liv peered in at him. Her face was pale, her expression full of resignation. And a good deal of resentment. “Hi,” she said, wrapping her arms around her waist. She glanced around the room, her posture stiff, then looked back at him. “Are you busy?”

“No, not at all.”
Just inspecting all the M4s and Symtex because there’s a war coming any time now.

He could see the silent resolve in her as she held his stare. He almost smiled. She was a pretty little thing with an iron backbone. He was glad about the latter, because in the weeks and months ahead she was going to need every bit of steel he detected in that delicate spine.

“Daegan said something to me earlier.” She blew out a hard breath and tossed her long hair over her shoulder. “I was going to leave, but when I was almost to my car I changed my mind. I thought maybe you could help me, being a doctor and all.”

Cade leaned against the cabinet and maintained his laid-back demeanor. When she swallowed, looking at all the medical equipment, he sensed her acute discomfort and prompted her. “What can I do for you?”

Her eyes met his, direct and unflinching. He admired the show of spunk in light of all she’d faced in the past twenty-four hours. “He said you could take a DNA sample. That it might show if I’m really…”
One of you.
She didn’t say it, but he knew that’s what she was thinking.

Cade hid his surprise, wondering how much Daegan had told her. “Sure, I can do that if you want.”

“Will it prove anything?”

He nodded. “It will show your ancestral lineage and where they came from. What population group they belonged to. But it’s the maternal mitochondrial DNA that’s most important. That’s where the Empowered bloodline originated and is passed down from.”

Her brow wrinkled. “Oh. So if I’ve got the right bloodline you think that’s sufficient proof?”

He already knew she was one of them. This sample was merely about helping her come to grips with it. “Together with the intense attraction between you and Daegan plus your ability to see emotional auras, yes.”

She nodded and shifted her feet, glanced away. But when she looked back up at him, her eyes were full of resolve. “Okay, let’s do it. I want to find out one way or the other.”

He led her over to a stainless steel chair next to a matching small table. “You squeamish about needles?”

“No.” She rubbed her arms, glanced around again. “But I’m getting more that way about this room.”

Cade smiled to put her more at ease. He wondered about her reaction. It went beyond mere dislike. He sensed a deeper reason behind it. “Yeah, it’s pretty sterile.”

Liv shook her head. “No, it’s not that. Well, that’s part of it I guess. There’s something about this place that gives me the creeps. Maybe it’s all the surgical stuff being in the same room with the weapons.”

He barely kept his mouth from falling open. “Daegan told you?” While she was still struggling to come to terms with what she was?

She shrugged, continued rubbing her arms. He could see the goose bumps on her bare skin. Unease rolled off her, so thick he could almost taste it. “I know there’s going to be a war against the Obsidian Lord’s Dark Army. And I know all three of you are going to be fighting in it. Apparently I am too,” she finished dully.

Holy shit. No wonder she was so pale. It took him a moment to respond. “Well. Guess it’s best that it’s all out in the open, but damn, you’re taking all this pretty well.” Better than he had when he’d transitioned.

Another shrug, but this one was tight with strain. “Only because I haven’t decided yet if I’ve gone nuts.”

He grinned. “No worries there. You’re running on all cylinders.”

A reluctant smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “No offense, but I’ll feel a bit more convinced of that when we get the results of the DNA test.” She sat in the chair. “Where do you send them, anyway? Is there some lab out there that knows about you guys?”

“Not the way you mean, no. Mortals don’t know about us, and that’s the way it stays for our protection.”

“Even if I told the best friend I have, she’d never believe me.”

He grabbed some supplies from the well-organized cabinets. A rubber tourniquet, alcohol wipe, syringe, a sterile swab in a sealed test tube. More test tubes for the blood samples. “If someone does discover us, we wipe their memories clean.”

“Is that what Daegan did to Aaron?”

Cade whipped his head around, his hand frozen around the test tubes. “What?”

A hint of alarm crept into her eyes. “Daegan said Aaron would never bother me again, but promised he didn’t kill him. When you said that about wiping memories, I assumed that’s what he’d meant.”

It was possible, but Cade doubted that’s what had happened. No way would Daegan let the man who’d tried to attack his mate get off so easily. And certainly not if he’d taken Vaughn with him. “Have you met Vaughn yet, by the way?” His tone sounded casual enough.

“No, and don’t change the subject, thanks.”

If Aaron was still breathing, it meant he’d seen the error of his ways and had a sudden, irreversible change of heart. Cade relaxed. “Daegan’s right. You’ve got nothing to worry about.” He sat down beside her and got everything ready. “Let’s do the swab first.” After taking it out of the tube, he handed it to her. “Rub it against the inside of your cheek for a few seconds.”

She did, handing it back.

Once that was sealed he labeled it and reached for the blood kit. “Let me see your veins.”

Liv held out her forearms to expose the cubital fossas, while Cade examined them quickly. “This one,” he said, touching her right arm. Her skin was cool, her growing phobia of the room evident. He stroked the alcohol wipe over the median cubital vein, tying the rubber tourniquet around her upper arm. “Make a fist.” He capped the syringe onto the first tube, took hold of her arm. “Want to look away?”

“No, I’m okay.”

He poked the needle into her skin and drew the first sample. Her pulse remained steady, her posture stiff.

“So where are you sending this?” she asked again.

He bit back a smile at the suspicious edge in her voice. No doubt she wondered if he was going to fabricate the whole thing. “There’s a genetics lab at UBC that I’ve worked with before. Apparently they just picked up an expert in Northern European genealogy, including the British Isles and the Baltic region. I’ll send them to her.”

“Daegan mentioned the Empowered have those combined lineages,” she said as he filled a second tube.

“That’s right.” He withdrew the needle, pressed a cotton ball to the puncture site. “Want to see something really cool?”

“I…sure.” She sounded less than enthusiastic.

“Lower your arm.” When she did, he removed the cotton ball. The blood oozed sluggishly out of the tiny hole, already clotting, but he wanted to show her this.

For an instant he thought about raising her arm and flicking his tongue over the mark, but Daegan would kick his ass for it…right after he ripped Cade’s head from his shoulders and yanked out his heart. No male ever tasted another mate’s blood. Not unless he had a death wish. Instead, Cade licked the end of a sterile swab then touched it to the puncture site.

Liv blinked, leaned closer when he withdrew the swab. While he disposed of it, she held up her arm, staring at the inside of her elbow. “It’s not bleeding.” She squinted and leaned in farther, until her nose almost touched her arm. “There’s not even a mark.” Her brows lowered as she glanced up at him. “What did you do?”

He smiled. “We have clotting agents in our saliva,” he answered simply, not telling her the reason for it. She had enough to cope with, and that information should definitely come from Daegan. Preferably
before
the bonding happened. “Pretty cool, huh?”

She rubbed the inside of her elbow, frowning at him. “I guess. So can I do that too?”

“Not quite yet. As soon as the uh, bonding’s completed you will, though.”

“Yeah, let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” she said with a scowl.

Cade didn’t bother telling her it was already a foregone conclusion. He set everything down then pulled out his phone. After he dialed the number he set it on the table, putting it on speaker so she could hear everything and know this wasn’t some elaborate scheme he’d cooked up to trick her.

“UBC Health Sciences.”

“Genealogical research, please.” He waited a few moments to be connected, then when the woman answered said, “This is Dr. Mackintosh.”

“Dr. Mackintosh! What can we do for you?”

“I’ve got another sample I’m sending you for analysis.”

“Okay. The usual detailed work-up?”

“Yeah, but I want your Northern European expert to look at it.”

“Oh. Nairne’s overseas right now, but she’s due back at the end of the week. Can she look at it then?”

Nairne. Uncommon name. Old Scottish. The mention of it did something funny to his insides. Sent a tingle through his bloodstream. He pushed the weird reaction aside. “I’d prefer she look at it ASAP. Where is she?”

“Lithuania, I think.”

That piqued his curiosity. “Where, exactly?”

“Someplace next to Kaliningrad that’s on a spit or something.”

Every muscle in his body tightened. “The Curonian Spit?”

“That’s it! Yeah, she went there to do more research. Something to do with legends and witches or whatever.” The woman laughed. “Nairne’s a little different. You know how history buffs are.”

Across the table, Liv’s eyes had gone wide. She watched him with an unblinking stare while he fought to control his sudden spike in anxiety.

Jesus. Had the genealogical expert gone over there to trace the lineages back and compare them with the legend of Neringa and the Hill of Witches? Did she somehow know about the Empowered? Cade’s stomach clenched. Daegan would have to know about this. They might have to track her down, scrub her memory to safeguard their existence.

Cade rubbed the back of his neck to dispel the odd tingling in his nape, cleared his throat. “Can you send her the report there?”

“I’m sure that would be fine. May I have her contact you?”

“Sure, she can reach me on my cell. I’ll courier the sample to you today.” He hung up and masked his sudden tension by arching a teasing brow at Liv. “Satisfied?”

She nodded grudgingly. “Yeah.” Her tone was almost disappointed. “Weird coincidence though, don’t you think? About that doctor being over there to do research?”

“Very.” Weird didn’t begin to cover it. This might be a serious security breach.

Liv cleared her throat, looking uncertain. “So I guess that’s it?”

“’Fraid so. I’ll get these packed up and shipped off.”

“Thanks.” Liv stood, rubbing her fingers over the healed puncture wound in her arm. “And you’ll let me know what the outcome is?”

Like he’d keep something that important from her and the others? “Of course.”

“Okay.” She looked tired now. Tired and out of sorts. “Sorry to be blunt, but…do you have a mate?”

He almost laughed at the idea. “No, and I’m not expecting to find one anytime soon.” He didn’t do long-term relationships. Short and sweet—very sweet, he thought with a grin—was more his style. Monogamy wasn’t a natural thing for him. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to settle down with one mate, no matter what that fucking prophecy might say.

Liv stared at him. “And this
thing
between me and Daegan,” she began, waving a hand in the air. “Is it…permanent?” The last word came out almost strangled.

Cade bit back a grin. “With most mates it is.”

Her expression brightened. “Most?” She seemed so hopeful that she and Daegan didn’t fall into that group. Because she didn’t know the consequences to the alternative.

“Like, ninety-nine point nine nine nine percent.”

“Great.” She huffed out a breath and walked to the door with a sour expression on her face. “Thanks Cade, you’ve been a big help.”

“Anytime.” When the steel door shut behind her with a clang, Cade smothered a chuckle and shook his head. For now he’d keep his eye on the geneticist and watch the show unfolding around him. He didn’t know how much longer this little drama between Liv and Daegan would play out, but it couldn’t last.

Still, it was a damned amusing to watch his hard-ass leader struggle futilely against his instinct to bond to his mate. Poor bastard didn’t stand a chance.

* * *

“Sir, I think we’ve found something important.”

At the urgency in his operative’s voice, Xavier sat up on the balcony’s chaise lounge and set down his wineglass. “What is it?”

“A bunch of parolees in the Vancouver area, all dying of heart attacks within a few days of each other. Including one of our guys.”

He was on his feet without consciously moving, striding into the suite’s living room. A Dark Army member, recently paroled and now dead of cardiac arrest. Interesting, especially when one considered the time and place. “Did you find Blackwell yet?” His heart pumped fast and hard.

“Not exactly.”

His hand tightened around the phone. “There must be something else. Some clue for you to follow.” He’d gone over the chance meeting with the blind boy a hundred times. It had to mean they were on the verge of finding him.

“We’re trying, sir.”

“Try harder,” he growled. “He’ll have money. Lots of it, left over from the old Coven.” God only knew how much it was worth now, having been invested into secure companies and bonds for all these years. “If he’s been in the area that long it means he’s planning to set up base there for the foreseeable future.” And if that was true, it meant there were others with him. Or that more were coming. He struggled to breathe through the sudden spike of adrenaline in his bloodstream. “He’ll need a big house, and it’ll have to be right near the water. Start with expensive waterfront properties sold in the last few months.”