Predatory Game (22 page)

Are you all right? I don’t like you in there with no backup. I’m going to knock this one out and join you, so give me a minute.

She didn’t want Jess inside, not when she didn’t know what she was dealing with.
The place feels empty. I’m tracking to see where he went, but I’ll call your team back first. Stay there, Jess, it’s easier for me.

Because you think the wheelchair slows you down.

Was there a touch of bitterness there? That shocked her. Jess had never sounded like that, never complained. Was he upset because she wanted to protect him?

That’s silly and you know it. I’ve always worked alone and it’s easier to work the way I’ve always done it.
He would understand that. A team didn’t take on a new man in the middle of a planned mission, at least not without taking a terrible risk. She was at the office door.

Yeah, someone had tried to gain entry, but it didn’t look as if they’d succeeded. She ran her fingers lightly over the door to check for traps.
They went after your office, Jess. Your boy out there might not have known what he was getting into, but he was a diversion. Someone used him to keep us occupied in case they weren’t out of the house before we got home.

Did they get into the office?

I think security held. The codes are intact. I’m entering now, checking for explosives and bugs.

With what?

Saber didn’t answer. She could usually detect a bug, but not explosives, not one hundred percent of the time. Pulses from transmitters and receivers were easy enough for her, and the office appeared clean. She doubted that the intruder had managed to break in.

Your office seems clean but you’ll have to sweep the house. The rest of the rooms are lousy with little listening devices.

You can feel a transmitter?
There was excitement in his voice. Respect.
Handy talent to have.

And heartbeats.
She didn’t know why she told him. Maybe to warn him. To make him back off. Maybe out of fairness, or self-preservation. But she gave him the truth as she picked up the phone. “Red flag,” she said softly into the mouthpiece and then she hung up without further explanation.

Show-off.
There was teasing respect in his voice and it warmed her.

His office was a bank of high-tech equipment. The real thing. She knew she was looking at hundreds of thousands of dollars. No way was Jess retired, not with this kind of electronics at his disposal. Most of it wasn’t on the market yet.
Nice setup.

Thanks.

I’m going through the rest of the house. Your team should be here in a couple of minutes.
She really hated leaving him out there alone and was torn. Whoever had been in the house was gone now, she was sure—well, almost certain—but she had to check anyway in case that tiny margin of error just happened to be in effect.

No.
Jess kept his voice calm.
I need you out here. Lloyd is coming around. And he’s not very happy. I’m not in a great position here. We wouldn’t want the two of them to get any ideas.

He absolutely didn’t want her in that house alone—not where he couldn’t protect her. He’d already made one mistake in front of her, kicking the gun out of his attacker’s hand, and sooner or later she’d remember that. She had an eye—and memory—for details.

He didn’t mind playing his wheelchair card if that was what it took to get her back to his side. He had no idea if the house was safe. She was still hesitating.
You’ll have to help me back into my chair before the others get here.
Okay that was low, but it worked, he felt her immediate response. Satisfaction and warmth mingled together. She loved him. She might not want to admit it, but she loved him.

“What are you grinning about?” She asked him suspiciously as she entered the garage. He was sitting on the floor beside his wheelchair, facing Bill, who still eyed him with fear. A few feet away, Lloyd was rolling back and forth and moaning. “You don’t look like you need much help to me.” But she went to him and caught at the back of his belt when he braced himself on the chair.

He hesitated. He was a big man and he didn’t want to take a chance on hurting her, not when he could get into the chair himself.
You’re enhanced physically as well as psychically?

She nodded.
Enough. I don’t have the muscle strength a lot of the others were given, but enough to help.

“Let my arms take my weight.” Keeping his eyes on Bill, Jess made certain the brakes were locked before lifting himself into the seat. He could feel her pull, her small body brushing up against him as his weight dragged her forward. “Are you stuck?”

“You’re laughing at me.” It took a moment to get her fingers from around his belt. She leaned into him, inhaling his scent. “I think you’re enjoying this.”

“Maybe. It’s been a while since I’ve seen any action.”

She studied his face. “Are you telling me the truth?”

“I’m sitting in a wheelchair, baby, and it’s pretty damn real. They aren’t going to send me out on a mission unless Ken or one of the others carries me on his back.”

She saw him kick the attacker, no question about it, and he was going to have to lie—or explain. Another experiment, another part of him artificial. He was genetically enhanced, physically and psychically. And now he was bionic. There wasn’t all that much left of the real Jess Calhoun. Once she knew the truth, fear would creep in, because he was far more dangerous than she had ever suspected. That wheelchair had been his lure, his bait.

“But you work for them.” She kept her voice low and she didn’t look at him.

“I told you I did. They put a lot of money and time into me and my training, angel face. They aren’t just going to let me walk away.”

Her head snapped around, her gaze colliding with his. “Or me. That’s what you’re saying, aren’t you, Jesse? You’re saying they aren’t going to let me go so easily.”

“They aren’t going to let you go at all, Saber. But there is more than one ‘they.’ We have the good guys and the bad guys, and you’re going to have to pick a side.”

“Why? I’m out. Let him come after me.”

“He’s relentless and sooner or later he’ll find you. He’s got a tracking system in every one of you. And I imagine you haven’t made him very happy running from him.”

“I know about the tracking device. He was putting the chips in our hips, but some of those escaping removed them, so he’s using a different system. I’m not worried about it, he can’t use it with me.” There was no humor in her smile. “Whitney thinks he’s superior to everyone, and that’s his downfall.”

“He isn’t going to stop, Saber.” He tried to be gentle, but he wanted her to understand the consequences. “You have to join us.”

Her eyes flashed. “No, I don’t, Jesse. Isn’t that the point of what we were all trained to do? Achieving freedom for the people? Well, I may not have had parents and a home, but I’m a person. And I want to be free.”

“You’re a predator, baby, same as me. We live in the shadows and we come out to hunt.” She looked young and fragile standing there while he crushed her dreams. He reached for her, but she stepped back, so that just his fingertips skimmed her wrist.
But you aren’t alone, Saber. I’m here and I’ll stand with you. We’ll all stand with you against him.

She turned away as the first wave of GhostWalkers burst into the garage, weapons drawn, faces serious. Logan Maxwell and Neil Campbell came in from either side.

“Two dead,” Logan reported after crouching to take a pulse. “Two alive.” He looked at Jess. “You both all right?”

“Saber has a bruise coming up on her face, but otherwise, we’re good. She checked downstairs, but not the upstairs.”

Ken and Mari are on the roof.
Logan sent the information to Jess and jerked Bill to his feet. “You’ll be taking a little ride with us.”

“I want a lawyer,” Bill demanded.

“Do I look like a cop to you?” Logan replied. “Don’t piss me off any more than you already have.”

Neil jerked the man to him. “So you like young girls?”

“No! I didn’t know she was fourteen. He didn’t tell us that.”

“Let’s go.”

“But, my friends. They killed everyone.”

“They didn’t kill you or your buddy over there. They saved you for us. So you’d better say everything we want to hear,” Neil instructed, shoving the man ahead of him out of the garage.

You’re such a tough guy.
Logan snickered.
The idiot’s going to bawl in another minute. Grab this one too.
He yanked Lloyd up, uncaring that the man’s jaw was dislocated and his nose broken. “Get out of here.”

Saber watched the team moving with swift efficiency, taking the house while she stood absolutely still, not wanting to draw attention to herself.

Jess’s hand enveloped hers. She tightened her fingers, her heart settling into a steadier rhythm. “Let’s go in. They’ll have to remove the bodies and clean up in here. I want to double-check my office.”

“We haven’t cleared the house,” Logan warned.

“We’ll be in the office. You must have swept that first,” Jess said. “And they didn’t get in.”

“Not the office, but they planted very sophisticated bugs everywhere else.” Logan handed him one. “Take a look at this. Not one of ours and not one I’ve seen Whitney use.” He glanced at Saber. “You must be Saber Wynter, Jess’s roommate.”

She nodded. His eyes reminded her of a hawk, sharp and restless and missing nothing. He made her feel more vulnerable than ever. His gaze dropped to her hand, linked with Jess’s. Instinctively she started to pull away, but Jess tightened his grip.

“We’ll be in the office, Logan,” Jess said.

Send her ahead.

Jess’s gaze flicked to Logan’s face. “Saber, will you get the door for me?”

“Sure.” She moved without hesitation, straight through the garage, turned slightly at the kitchen door with her hand on the doorknob, and glanced into the windshield of her car. There was a handoff of something she couldn’t make out, but Logan definitely gave an item to Jess and he slipped it into the bag he always carried on his chair. Her mouth tightened, but she kept walking.

Damn him. So much for being on the team. She was crazy for thinking she could make a place for herself. Essentially she was trading one puppetmaster for another. Because if she worked for whoever Jess worked for, sooner or later they’d be sending her out into the field to do exactly what Whitney wanted her to do, and she couldn’t live with that.

She sat on the desktop, swinging her legs, and took a long slow look around. The office was huge, bigger than her sitting room upstairs. There was a framed picture of her with her arms around Jess’s neck. His head was tilted so he could look back at her and they were laughing. She remembered him playing around with a digital camera he’d been unable to get to work, but apparently he’d managed to fix it.

She turned her head to watch Jess roll through the door. He didn’t have even a smear of dirt on him. “You snake. You said the camera didn’t work.” She indicated the photograph on his desk.

“It was the only way to get your picture. Here, let me look at your face. You have a bruise coming up.”

His hands were gentle as he ran them over the delicate bones in her face. “Are you hurt anywhere else?”

“No. But don’t think I didn’t notice that cut on your head from earlier. I know your male pride is very fragile, but it looks worse than my bruise.”

His eyebrow shot up. “Are we in competition?”

“No.” She ducked her head. “You scared me, Jesse. You tackled a killer with a gun.” Her heart had been in her throat and she’d been terrified for him, but she knew enough to choose her words carefully. He was a man who believed men should protect women, and worrying because he was in a wheelchair wouldn’t sit well with him.

“You kicked him.”

“Hey!” Logan’s voice drifted down from the upstairs hall. “Jess, we need you up here.”

“Be right there,” Jess called back and swung his chair around.

Saber swallowed her protest and slid from the desk. “I’ll go with you.” They must have found her field kit. She’d tucked it away safely but maybe not safe enough. It wasn’t the end of the world. He already knew she was a GhostWalker. She’d just have to come up with plausible explanations for some of her equipment.

She went up in the lift, holding his hand, trying to find a way to explain the chemicals in her bag. A small group of men were gathered in her doorway. A faint musky scent warned her it might not be her field bag they’d found. The sudden silence had Jess gliding ahead of her, and between his chair and Logan they blocked the doorway. Jess stiffened and she felt the house vibrate with rage.

Saber avoided Jess’s outstretched arm and pushed past Logan to gain entrance to her room. Horrified, she stared around her. Bile rose, but she pushed it down. To have someone invade her room was such a violation, but to do this…the room stank as if the occupants had had an orgy. Her clothes were slashed to ribbons and every scrap of underwear was thrown around the room, most containing sickening white blobs. The bed had been neatly made, but one of the cleaners had pulled back the covers to find more underwear coated in semen.

Saber pressed her hand to her mouth, shocked to realize she was trembling. She could feel the sympathy in the room, and was grateful the men didn’t look at her. She turned abruptly and stalked out.

“Logan,” Jess began.

“We’re on it. He left enough DNA here to identify an army. This is a sick bastard, Jess, and she’s not safe. If this one is connected in any way to Whitney, he’s gone rogue at this point. Whitney would never condone this. He’s too…scientific. This would be abhorrent to him.”

“Funny where people draw their lines. Sometimes I wonder what the world is coming to.” He paused and looked around at the cleaning crew. “I want this room stripped of anything he may have touched. Separate her fingerprints so nothing goes out but his. I don’t want a flag raised on some remote computer Whitney might be monitoring.”