Bound By Darkness Part 10

Laurel bent down to whisper in his ear, reminding him that the curtain only gave the illusion of privacy. They weren't alone, and any Paladins who were awake could hear every word if they weren't careful. Laurel knew that better than most, so he'd have to trust her judgment on the matter.

"Sasha Willis stopped by to see me and ended up telling Devlin everything about what happened between the two of you yesterday. That's how she found out you'd been hurt. I don't mean to be telling tales out of school, but she took it hard."

Sasha told Devlin everything? Somehow Larem doubted that. She'd never want anyone to find out she'd knowingly let a Kalith touch her-or that she'd liked it.

"That's okay." What else could he say?

"The thing is, I think she'll be back. You know, to check on your progress." There was a great deal of curiosity in Laurel's dark eyes, but she was too tactful to press for details.

"Thanks for the warning."

"If you don't want to see her, I can tell her that I've restricted visitations until you're fully recovered."

Oh, he wanted to see Sasha all right. Too much, in fact. But considering he'd been attacked by a guard, feelings were already running high against him right now. The last thing she needed was to be seen favoring the enemy.

"She's just feeling obligated because of what happened." And he didn't need her grat.i.tude, especially because of what had happened.

Laurel's eyes narrowed in obvious doubt. "We'll see how you feel about it tomorrow. We don't get a lot of visitors anyway, so I can honestly say that we're not really set up for it. I need my patients to get all the rest they can while they're here."

Laurel stood back up and laid the back of her hand on his forehead. "No fever. You're definitely on the mend. I'm glad, Larem. Very glad. Now get some sleep. You'll need all the energy you can get to duke it out with Lonzo over the whole laundry thing."

"Tell him to bring it on."

"I'll do that. Right now, though, a feather could knock both of you over. It wouldn't be much of a contest, so I won't be starting a betting pool anytime soon."

"Don't blame you." He was a healer himself and recognized when someone else was running on empty. "I'll be fine, Laurel. Go get some rest."

"Nag."

"Somebody should."

He managed to hold on to consciousness until her footsteps faded into the distance, leaving behind only the soft chorus of beeping machines to lull him to sleep. And if the last thought he had was of Sasha, well, no one had to know.

Contrary to Dr. Young's advice, Sasha was back in the office bright and early Sat.u.r.day morning. She'd already lost too many hours over the past couple of days to take the whole weekend off as well. At least she had the place to herself for the moment.

Where to start? E-mail first and then she'd follow up with D.J. to see if he'd made any progress. Later, maybe she'd take a short break and go back downstairs to the lab and check on the status of Laurel's patients, one in particular.

As she logged in to her account, she sipped her white chocolate latte with cinnamon and whip, postponing having to wade through the unending barrage of e-mails. Back home, her local barista had laughingly called the combination a "Sasha special." Hopefully she'd be living in Seattle long enough to become a regular at the coffee shop here, too. That would be nice.

A knock on the door startled her out of her reverie. "Come in!" she called.

D. J. Clayborne stuck his head inside the door. "Hi. I thought I'd let you know I'm back working on the b.a.s.t.a.r.d's records this morning. Didn't want to freak you out if you heard me banging around next door."

"I appreciate the warning, D.J." She picked up her coffee. "Can I see what you're working on? I promise not to hover."

"Sure thing. Give me a few minutes to get started first."

The Paladin took off for Kincade's old office at just short of a run, which seemed to be his only speed. Even when he was sitting at the computer, he was always in motion-foot tapping, his hand pounding the desk with a rhythm only he could hear, anything to burn off some of his endless supply of energy.

A few minutes later, she heard D.J. start cursing a blue streak. She hurried into the adjacent office to find him staring at the computer screen with the strangest look on his face.

"D.J., what's wrong?"

When he didn't immediately answer, she moved closer, careful not to startle him. "What's up?"

D.J. finally looked up and blinked. Then he shook his head as if to clear it and shrugged. "Sorry, Sasha, it's nothing to do with you. Just a strange e-mail. I've gotten a couple lately I haven't been able to figure out. I suspect it's a Paladin friend yanking my chain."

His smile turned wicked as he rubbed his hands together. "Once I manage to track them back to him, there will be h.e.l.l to pay. I'll fry more than just his d.a.m.n hard drive."

Then he looked chagrined. "Oops, probably shouldn't have said that in front of you. Don't suppose you could forget you heard anything?"

All she could do was laugh at the incorrigible hacker. "Heard what? I'm just standing here enjoying my coffee and watching you working hard to decipher Kincade's files."

D.J.'s eyes twinkled with good humor as his fingers flew over the keyboard. "Yes, ma'am, that's exactly what I'm doing. I expect to make some solid progress, too, because I'm all about staying on task. Just ask Devlin."

D.J. went from playful to predator, leaning forward to study the screen. "Gotcha, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d."

He pulled out his cell phone. "Cullen, get your worthless a.s.s over to the admin building now. I'm in Kincade's old office, and I'm going to need your help with this."

Cullen was the other computer whiz among the local Paladins. Rumor had it that between him and D.J., there wasn't a server in the world that would be safe if they decided to go on the prowl.

Sasha moved closer. "Did you find something interesting?"

"What?" He actually looked surprised to see she was still there. "Yep, I've found Kincade's offsh.o.r.e bank accounts. Cullen's actually better with tracking that kind of thing than I am, although not by much. We might just be able to strip those accounts and get back some of our own. But if I'm reading this right, Kincade had some playmates."

D.J. studied the screen again. "We'll also see where these transfers lead us. It's too early to start pointing fingers, but a couple originated in the Regents' server in . . ."

He paused as if trying to choose his words carefully. Sasha waited for a second and then prodded him. "Originated where?"

He swallowed hard and answered. "Admin in St. Louis. But, hey, that could be misleading. Kincade was d.a.m.n good at hiding his tracks, so this might be a false trail."

A shiver of dread washed over her, as if someone had just tromped on her grave. The last thing they all needed was for this mess to lead back to another Regent, not to mention there were only a handful stationed in the St. Louis sector. Fewer still when she eliminated the two she trusted implicitly-her father and her Uncle George. She wasn't about to start pointing fingers at any of their close a.s.sociates without having hard evidence to back up the accusation.

But neither was she here to protect the guilty. "D.J., we need to nail these guys whoever they are. If you do get any of the money back or the names of Kincade's accomplices, the steak dinner's on me. Your choice of restaurants. Cullen, too."

"It's a deal."

He went on keyboarding, muttering under his breath as he did so.

Time to get back to her own work. Once she made some headway, she'd take a brief break and check in with Laurel. By now, most of the Paladins should be up and about. According to the morning reports, the barrier had finally stabilized long enough for everyone to have a peaceful night.

Well, except for her. Her dreams had been full of nightmarish images of Others chasing her through the darkness, blood dripping from their swords, their pale eyes flaring with the need to kill. The strange part was that she hadn't just been running from them but toward someone else. She'd awakened with her heart pounding right before turning that final corner to safety. Rather than be relieved the nightmare had ended, she'd been disappointed because she hadn't gotten even a glimpse of who had been waiting for her.

Although she could guess.

As soon as she sat back down at her desk, her cell phone rang. She almost let it go to voice mail now that she'd finally gotten into a productive rhythm. Unfortunately her conscience wouldn't let her ignore it for long. As the representative for the Regents, she needed to be available twenty-four/seven. Lives could depend on it.

A glance at the caller ID eliminated that possibility, not when her G.o.dfather was calling. Hopefully he and her father wouldn't make a habit of checking up on her every day or two. She gave up and answered.

"Hi, Uncle George, what's up?"

Evidently her lack of enthusiasm showed in her voice. George laughed and said, "Gee, why don't you try to contain your excitement, Sasha? You wouldn't want me to think you're happy to hear from me or anything."

She winced. "Okay, my bad. I'm trying to wade through an unbelievable number of e-mails, most of which say nothing and accomplish even less."

"Welcome to the world of upper management, my dear. I take it you're in the office and not out enjoying the day."

"I originally planned to stop by the office for just a few minutes but decided to put in a couple of hours to clear a few things off my desk."

"Well, at least try to get out in the sun for a while. That is, if it ever actually shines in Seattle. Any truth to the rumor that people there don't tan, they rust?"

She grinned. "You know, I think that's a rumor the people out here started to discourage others from moving here. It's been sunny and warm since I arrived."

"Okay, if you say so. But speaking as your favorite honorary uncle, I'm hoping you don't like it too much."

Without waiting for her to respond, he went on. "At least I see the barrier has stabilized, so that's good."

"Yeah, it is. I was going to stop by the labs on my way out to see how the wounded are doing." She paused. "We lost two guards, so that's been tough on everyone."

"Rumor has it that another problem almost got solved." George's voice turned chilly. "Too bad that didn't work out."

Sasha's brow furrowed. "What problem was that?"

"I understand that one of the guards almost eliminated one of Seattle's pet Others. I suppose they've even wasted our limited resources patching up the b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Far better for all concerned if they'd let him bleed out and die. Good riddance all around."

She couldn't believe her ears. How could anyone even begin to think Larem's death would be beneficial? George's disappointment was beyond disgusting.

As tempting as it was to rip into him for his callous att.i.tude, she had to learn how he'd found out about the attack so quickly. She sure hadn't said anything and seriously doubted that either Devlin or Laurel would've reported the incident. The last thing any of the locals wanted to do was draw attention to the Kalith living among them.

"Wow, the grapevine must be in full swing. How did you hear about that so quickly? I just learned about it myself late yesterday." She kept her voice neutral, aiming for mildly curious rather than outraged.

It didn't work.

"It must have been in one of the reports that came in this morning-maybe from the medical team." George rustled a bunch of papers in the background. "I can't seem to put my finger on it at the moment."

Yeah, right. She knew him better than that. The man had a mind like a filing cabinet with every bit of information sorted, categorized, and easily retrievable. He obviously had no intention of telling her how he'd found out. Fine, but at least she now knew there was a spy here who reported back to Uncle George and most likely her father, too.

She'd drop the matter for now. George wouldn't tell her anything he didn't want her to know, and there was no use in antagonizing him. Even so, she was furious. She'd like to think she'd feel the same way no matter who'd been attacked, but that would be a lie.

Did her father agree with her G.o.dfather's sentiment? Would he feel different if he knew that Larem had fought long and hard to save her life? She couldn't share that information with George, though, without admitting she'd managed to get herself trapped in the tunnels. If the spy hadn't told him, neither would she. Odd, though, that the guy had reported the incident involving Larem but obviously hadn't mentioned her part in it.

Better to change subjects. "Well, I'd better go if I want to get out of here anytime soon. By the way, did Dad tell you I might have found a condo to rent?"

"Well, my feelings on that subject are on a par with your father's, but we both know you'll make your own decisions. Even so, it seems like a lot of effort when you have no idea how long you'll actually have to be there."

Yeah, she did know how they felt. She really didn't want to be reminded that her a.s.signment might only be temporary, but at least she'd diverted his focus from the attack on Larem.

"Take care and don't spend the whole day in the office reading reports either. Go play golf or something."

"Don't worry, I won't be here much longer." George was back to shuffling the papers again. "Don't forget to keep me posted on your progress in deciphering Kincade's accounts."

"Take care and don't spend the whole day in the office reading reports either. Go play golf or something."

"Don't worry, I won't be here much longer." George was back to shuffling the papers again. "Remember to keep me posted on your progress in deciphering Kincade's files."

"There's nothing to report." Yet. Nothing concrete, anyway. No use in stirring up a hornets' nest until she knew more.

After they exchanged good-byes, she hung up. The conversation had left her unsettled. Rather than delve back into her e-mail, she decided to see if Cullen Finley and D.J. had made any strides.

Sasha shut down her laptop and packed it up to take with her. After turning off the lights, she headed down the hall.

She paused to listen to the rumble of two male voices, laughing when D.J. suddenly whooped loudly and shouted, "Why you sneaky SOB!" Cullen's response was quieter but clearly just as excited.

Both of them looked up as soon as she stepped through the door. Cullen smiled at her. "Hey, Sasha, look what we found!"

They made room so she had a clear view of the computer screen. "Kincade wasn't just ripping off the Kalith by letting them buy their way into our world. The greedy SOB was also stealing directly from the Regents."

Cullen pointed at a line of numbers. "Not only that but D.J. was right about Kincade making deposits into accounts that lead straight back to St. Louis. Now we know for sure he wasn't alone in this. If we can follow the money trail, we might just find out who else is involved."

"Think you can do that?"

D.J. acted insulted. "Hey, you're not dealing with amateurs here. As long as you're sure you want us to see where this leads us, given enough time, we'll nail them."

She believed him. "Keep me posted. For now, I'd like to keep this between the three of us. Well, make that four since I figure I'm second on your list of people to call, right after Devlin."

"We will." Cullen's eyes had a teasing glint in them. "And who knows, we might even call you first."

"Yeah, right, like that's going to happen," she said, laughing. "I'm out of here. Lock the office when you leave."

Before she reached the door, two cell phones rang, neither of them hers. Both Paladins answered at the same time.

"On our way!"

Her pulse sped up as both men shed their good humor, revealing the deadly warriors beneath the faade. Cullen quickly shut down the computer.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Lacey called Devlin from the geology lab to warn him that she's seeing fluctuations in the energy levels down near St. Helens. We're heading there to beef up the coverage just in case."

She shuddered, the memory of the battle she'd witnessed all too clear in her mind. "Do you need a ride back to your headquarters? My car is parked in the garage next door."

Cullen stood up. "Thanks for the offer, but I've got my car here, too."

"We'll be back." D.J. picked up a duffel she hadn't noticed earlier. It clunked when he slung the strap over his shoulder. No doubt his portable weapons stash.

She had a powerful urge to hug the two men. It would probably only embarra.s.s them, and she really didn't know either of them well enough to presume.

She settled for saying, "Be careful out there, guys."