Spy High (45 page)

“Nah, it’s okay,” Hellhound assured
him. “We’ll wake ya up a little sooner next time. Ya didn’t start
punchin’ right away. Try it again.”

Kane looked as though he would argue,
but then he seemed to succumb to exhaustion. “Your funeral,” he
mumbled as his eyes dropped closed and he fell back on the
pillow.

I had barely begun to dissipate the
adrenaline and relax when he began to mutter in his sleep, the
rustling of the blankets accompanying his struggles.

Rolling off the mattress as Hellhound
turned the flashlight on again, I limped hurriedly across to stroke
the hand that had already clenched into a fist.

“Wake up, John,” I urged. “It’s just a
dream.”

“Uh?” His eyes opened, staring up at me
without recognition.

“Just a dream,” I repeated.

“Oh…” He blinked and shook his head. I
knew he was fully awake when his eyes focused and flicked down over
my naked body before jerking up to meet my eyes again.

“Sorry,” he said. A flush rose on his
neck. “Sorry. Go back to bed.”

“Just move over next to me by the
mattress,” I urged. “You won’t punch me; I’ll wake you up before
you do.”

“No. I won’t take that chance.” He
wrapped his arms over his chest.

“Please, John?” I shivered in the damp
chilly air. “Otherwise I’ll have to keep getting out of bed and
it’s cold out here.”

“That’s why I should be sleeping in the
other tent,” he argued.

“Come on, Cap, move over here,”
Hellhound said. “Aydan’s freezin’ her ass off. It’ll be better for
everybody if ya just move over.”

Kane shook his head stubbornly and
Hellhound blew out a breath. “Okay. You win, Cap. Come on back to
bed, darlin’.”

I hurried back to huddle gratefully
next to Hellhound’s warm body, and he pressed his lips to my ear.
“Just wait’ll he falls asleep again, an’ I’ll drag his mattress
over. He’s so bagged he won’t even notice.”

I cuddled closer. “Good plan. He gives
lots of advance warning before he starts punching so we should be
able to get him awake before he does any damage.”

It only took a few minutes for Kane’s
breathing to slow and deepen again, and Hellhound rose quietly from
the mattress. Some careful jockeying later, Kane lay stretched out
next to my side of the mattress. He groaned and turned over, his
hand falling across my arm. Then he stilled and his breathing
deepened again.

Hellhound crept back under the
blankets. “There, he’s better already. See how he settled down
soon’s he touched ya? This’s gonna be better for everybody. But
d’ya want me to trade places with ya?” He waved a hand at his
battered features. “It ain’t gonna matter if he nails me.”

I chuckled and cuddled closer to his
warmth. “No, this is fine. I think it might be a bit of a shock for
him if he woke up playing kissy-face with you.”

Hellhound snorted laughter. “Helluva
shock for both of us, I’d say. G’night, darlin’. Sleep tight.”

I woke slowly, aching all over. A
moment of claustrophobic panic seized me when I opened my eyes to
find myself enclosed by mountains of blankets on both sides, but it
dissipated rapidly when I recognized Kane and Hellhound under the
mountains.

On my left, Hellhound’s familiar quiet
snoring lulled me back into relaxation, his arm draped warm and
heavy over my hips. On my right, Kane slept in silence, his
breathing deep and slow, his face still pale but peaceful. His arm
lay across my ribs, and I suppressed a giggle at the thought of
what they’d do if I managed to slip out and they woke up in each
other’s arms.

If I craned my neck, I could see
Hellhound’s wristwatch without sitting up. It read eight-fifteen,
and I let out a long breath. Still another hour of sleep. Thank
God. Between waking to soothe Kane’s nightmares and being woken
when Hellhound soothed mine, it had been a damn short night.

I was just closing my eyes again when
Kane jerked and mumbled, his face twisting in agitation.

I stroked the hard knot of his clenched
fist. “John,” I whispered. “Wake up. It’s just a dream.”

His eyes flew open, dark and
disoriented.

“Just a dream,” I repeated.

“Oh…” His fist opened, his eyelids
drooping already. “Thanks…”

A moment later his breathing slowed
into sleep again and I relaxed. Beside me, Hellhound whispered,
“Okay, darlin’?”

I turned to smile at his sleepy face on
the pillow. “Okay. Go back to sleep.”

“Mmhmm.”

A moment later his snores resumed, and
I drifted into warm oblivion.

I woke with a start to the sound of
scratching at the tent flap. Kane bolted up in bed beside me, fists
clenched, and Hellhound roused on my other side, leaning up on one
elbow to gather me close with a protective arm.

Moonbeam’s soft voice floated through
the canvas. “Storm Cloud Dancer, it’s Moonbeam Meadow Sky.”

I gave my two bare-chested companions a
resigned glance and received shrugs in return. Tucking the blankets
around me, I called, “Come in.”

Moonbeam stepped through the tent flap
and stopped short at the sight of us. Then she smiled. “Good
morning, dears. I just thought you’d want to know that Blaze
Featherwind is up and planning to leave in an hour. I don’t think
she’ll seek you out for some time yet, as she seems rather…” she
hesitated. “…taken aback,” she decided with a smile, “…about the
state of her hair, her bed, her tent, and the weather in
general.”

I cocked an ear at the pattering of
rain on canvas above us. “Ah. Right.” I leaned against Hellhound’s
solid heat behind me and ran an appreciative hand over Kane’s
muscular back. “You know, this is the first time in four months
I’ve woken up warm.”

“Well, dear, now you know what it
takes.” Moonbeam’s eyes twinkled conspiratorially.

“How’s your arm?” I asked.

“Sore.” Her fingertips floated over the
neat bandage that swathed her forearm from wrist to elbow. “I can’t
believe I was foolish enough to reach through that broken glass.”
She gave a light shrug. “Silly old woman. Well, I just wanted to
let you know about Blaze Featherwind.”

I grabbed Hellhound’s wrist and turned
his watch toward me. “Right, so she’ll be leaving at ten o’clock,”
I said, wondering whether Dave had called her or she had called
him. Or if she had made other arrangements entirely. That would be
bad. “Uh, do you know how she’s planning to leave?” I asked.

“I understand her fiancé will be
picking her up.”

“Fiancé?” Hope warmed my veins.
“Really?”

“That’s what she said.” Moonbeam
smiled. “I see that’s good news to you.”

“Very.” I grinned. “I’d better get
dressed and see her off, then.”

“I’ll see you later,” Moonbeam said,
and withdrew, closing the tent flap behind her.

I flopped back on the mattress. “So
that’s taken care of. Thank God.”

“What about you, darlin’?” Hellhound
asked. “Will ya get to go home now?”

“God, I hope so,” I breathed. “I was
planning to call Stemp this morning and see if he’ll finally let me
go. Which reminds me, did either of you report to him about any of
this?”

“Nah,” Hellhound said. “Not unless he
asks. I was never officially here.”

“I gave him my final report on my last
mission last night,” Kane said. “Nothing since. And I don’t think I
will either unless he asks.” He eyed our triple-wide bed with a wry
twist to his mouth. “I see I was overruled last night.”

“Yep. An’ it worked out fine,”
Hellhound said complacently.

Kane got out of bed and stretched to
his full height, muscles flexing and crackling. I watched the
magnificent sight, feeling slightly uncomfortable about
appreciating his well-filled black briefs and rippling muscles with
Hellhound’s naked bulk at my back.

Apparently Kane was uncomfortable, too.
He dressed rapidly without looking at us and paused by the tent
flap. “I’m going to take some leave time,” he said to the floor. “I
have several months built up and I need a chance to… unwind. To
think. I’m going to call Stemp this morning and tell him. Then I’m
going to get on that bike and take a road trip down through
California. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” I
hesitated. “Maybe… you should think about calling Dr. Rawling,
too.”

He met my eyes. “I will. That will be
my second call this morning.”

“Hey, Cap,” Hellhound said diffidently.
“If ya need some time to yourself, I get it. But if ya want some
company, that’s a ride I been wantin’ to take for a while,
too.”

Kane smiled, and I hadn’t realized how
much tension he’d been holding in his shoulders until they relaxed.
“We always talked about it, didn’t we?” he said. “But we never got
around to it.”

Hellhound grinned. “No time like the
present. Just lemme swap that pansy-ass street-an’-trail bike for a
Harley an’ call Miz Lacey to look after Hooker a little longer, an’
I’m ready to ride.”

Kane turned to me. “Aydan, would you
like to come, too? You could rent a bike in Victoria.”

I hesitated. I wanted to go home. But
would he be hurt if I declined?

Probably not. It sounded as though this
was something they’d planned together long ago. Guy time. It would
do them both good.

“Thanks, it sounds like a great trip,
but I really just want to go home,” I replied, knowing I’d said the
right thing as soon as the words left my mouth.

“Just like old times.” Kane
straightened and a bit of the old sparkle returned to his eyes as
he grinned at Hellhound. “Get up and get dressed, you hairy ugly
bastard. We’ve got a highway calling us.”

Hellhound threw him an exaggerated
salute with an extended middle finger, and Kane laughed and ducked
out the tent flap.

Hellhound let out a breath and I felt
the tension leave his body.

I turned to face him. “Are you
okay?”

“Yeah.” He sank back on the pillow. “I
was worried about him.”

“Me, too. I was worried about both of
you. And… this.” I waved a hand at our state of undress. “I don’t
want to be a strain on your friendship.”

“Well, yeah, this ended up kinda weird,
but we’ll figure it out, darlin’. An’ I think this bike trip is
gonna be good for him. He’s been wound up too tight for too
long.”

“And you?” I touched his cheek.

“Me? Hell, I’m always okay.”

I shook my head and kissed him. “No,
you’re always amazing. Come on, let’s get dressed. I want to call
Stemp and then go and see Nichele off.”

An hour later, Nichele fluttered beside
her suitcase in the rain-drenched field. “Oh-em-gee, Aydan, I can’t
believe what a mess I am! I had a little party with Aurora last
night…”

Beside me, Aurora flushed guiltily, but
Nichele prattled on, “…and this morning I had the mother of all
hangovers! I swear to God, Aydan, I hurt all over! And I can’t find
my clothes. Thank God my Valentino sneakers were under my bed. And
I’ve got the worst bedhead
ever
; I can’t believe how this
wet weather wrecks your hair. I don’t know how you lasted here all
this time. And I haven’t showered in two days…”

She turned anxious eyes toward me. “I’m
such a mess. What if Dave…”

“Dave will be so glad to see you he
won’t care if you’re covered in pig shit,” I assured her.

She wrinkled her nose. “Eeeuw, gross,
girl! I’m going to make him take me straight to the Empress in
Victoria and I’m going to shower for
days
and go to the spa,
and oh-em-gee, look at my nails! A manicure, first thing…” She
broke off. “Look, there he is! Oh-em-gee, there he is!”

She gripped my wrist hard enough to
leave little half-moon nail indentations in my skin. “Ohmigod,
Aydan, I can’t believe I’m so nervous!”

“Relax. Take a breath.” I pried her
fingers loose, beginning to be infected by her nerves myself.

Dave’s highway tractor rumbled into the
field, bouncing over the uneven ground to pull to halt in front of
us, the air brakes hissing. Dave swung down from the cab seconds
after the wheels stopped turning and hurried toward us, looking as
nervous as Nichele.

He bent to give her a quick hug and a
peck on the lips. “Ready to go home, honey?” he asked, his voice
cracking with false nonchalance.

Nichele cast her gaze down, clinging to
his hand. “Um… no, not really…”

“Oh.” Dave threw me a desperate look.
“Well, um…”

“I was hoping…” Nichele gave him a
quick glance from under her lashes. “…maybe you’d take me to the
Empress Hotel in Victoria…?”

He brightened, already beginning to nod
when she added, “…maybe… for an early honeymoon?”

“Uh…” A flood of crimson raced up his
face to set his ears alight. “Did you say honeymoon?”

“Yes.” She bit her lip, looking up at
him with pink cheeks. “I mean…
Yes.
”

“Yes?” Comprehension burst onto his
face in a grin wide enough to threaten his ears. He swept her up in
a bear hug and I revelled in the sweetness of their embrace,
grinning almost as widely as Dave.

When they finally pried themselves
apart, I asked Nichele, “What changed your mind?”

She beamed at Aurora. “The Earth
Spirit. And Aurora.”

Aurora flushed, her smile bright.

Nichele went on, “She said if love is
real, it’ll never let you down. And even if it does, having your
heart broken is still not as bad as never being loved because you
were afraid to try.”

She turned to Dave. “So I want to try.”
She screwed her face into a ferocious scowl. “But if you cheat on
me even once, we’re done.”

Dave’s arm tightened around her.
“Honey, if I was dumb enough to cheat on you, I’d deserve to be
alone.”

Nichele leaned into him, gazing up
adoringly. “I love you.”

He flushed. “I love you, too,
honey.”

I made a gagging noise. “Get out of
here, you two; you’re throwing me into diabetic shock.”