Riley Jensen 03 - Tempting Evil Part 23

"Yes, sir."

"How long before the explosion was this?"

"Ten, maybe fifteen minutes, sir."

Moss swore and snapped his gaze to the second man. "And you?"

"I saw a heat signature in the kitchen, but by the time I got there, the person had left through the window."

"And you didn't give chase?"

"I saw no person, sir. Only a fox sniffing out the rubbish."

Something in me stilled. A fox? Nerida was a werefox, and even a vamp couldn't tell the difference between the heat signature of a real fox to that of a shapeshifter or werefox. The guard was a shifter himself, so he should have been able to sense the difference, but if he'd been more interested in getting back to bed, maybe he'd simply taken what he'd seen at face value.

And while I had no doubt that real foxes did scavenge around the bins here nightly, it just seemed a little too much of a coincidence that this fox was sighted so soon after the guard had sprung someone in the kitchen. Fact was, most real foxes would have scampered at the first hint of movement. They certainly wouldn't have stayed there scavenging as a vampire approached. Most wild ones feared the undead almost as much as most humans did.

But what would Nerida be doing in the kitchen? Had she been involved in the explosion or was it merely a coincidence? Why would anyone want to blow this section of the house up, anyway? There was little here but the kitchen and dining areas, and the staff who ran them.

So what was Moss doing here? How'd he get caught in the explosion when he was supposedly talking to the new intake of guards?

"I want you to do a walk around the area. See if you can spot that heat signature again."

The words were barely out of Moss's mouth when I was dragged back then forced up the slight knoll and into a knot of trees.

"Why the h.e.l.l did you do that?" I asked, shaking free of both Quinn's grip and the shadows concealing my form as we stopped.

Quinn also stepped free of night's cloak, and a lot more elegantly than me. "He was about to switch to infrared. He would have spotted us in an instant."

"Given he wasn't even facing us, there was plenty of time to move."

"Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, it wasn't worth the risk of discovery." He paused, his gaze moving to the mess below us. "I think I'll follow Moss for a while. If you find Rhoan, let him know I am here, and that I will contact him later.""If you kill Moss, they're going to know this place has been infiltrated."

His gaze flicked to mine, obsidian depths once again devoid of emotion. "I am not the amateur here."

He had a point, but it was an annoying one. "No, you're just the man h.e.l.l-bent on revenge, regardless of the cost."

"I will not do anything to jeopardize you or Rhoan."

"That a promise?"

His hesitation was brief but nevertheless there. "Yes."

I studied him for a moment, weighing his words, hearing truth and yet not trusting it. "I don't know how much stock you vampires put in promises, but let me give one to you-if Rhoan gets hurt because your need for revenge overrides your vow, I'll make you pay for it."

He didn't say anything, just turned and walked down the hill, the shadows again taking him from sight as he neared the end of the trees.

I rubbed my head wearily, and let my gaze roam across the smoking ma.s.s of rubble and partial walls below. Moss was across the far side now, talking to other guards. The first two were walking around, heading my way as they scanned the area. Time to get moving, before I was spotted.

I padded through the trees, keeping to the deep shadows and away from the occasional flickers of moonlight. I didn't have the cloak of night wrapped around me because my head was beginning to pound, and it would take more energy to hold the shadows close than I really had right now. So hitting moonlight when my skin was basically lily white wouldn't be a good thing.

As I drew away from the wreckage and closer to the whole sections of the house, I noticed a small gathering of people standing or kneeling in a group near the front of one of the main doors. A heartbeat later, a tingle of awareness ran across my skin, and my heart leapt with joy. My brother was amongst those below.

I stopped, my gaze searching the small crowd. I couldn't see anyone with red hair, and it took me a while to realize why. Rhoan didn't have red hair. Thanks to Liander's magic, he was now boring brown.

With that in mind, he wasn't hard to find. He was on the outskirts of the group, sitting on the ground, his clothes dusty and torn and a b.l.o.o.d.y cloth held to his head.

For the second time that night I reacted without thinking, and it took Rhoan looking up and minutely shaking his head to remember where I was and who we were supposed to be.

I slowed to walking speed and skirted the main group, pretending concern and offering words of encouragement to those being tended to before making my way toward him. His gaze met mine. His brown eyes might be alien but his smile was all too familiar. So warm and welcoming. G.o.d, I was so happy to see him again, it was hard to restrain the urge to dance.

"Hey," he said, so softly it was little more than a stirring of air. "Glad to see you got here safely."

"And I'm glad to see you got out of that mess safely." I wanted to touch him, hug him, but that was impossible, so I simply kneeled beside him, my knees touching his thighs as I raised his hand to see the wound. It was nothing too bad, just a nasty jagged cut he could have easily healed by shifting shape. "Why haven't you fixed that?"

"Because my wolf is red, which is at odds with my new ident.i.ty."

Of course. Stupid me. "So why were you even in the kitchen?"

"It's been a pretty rugged day, and none of us had much of a chance to eat." He shrugged. "Moss had arranged a meal in the kitchen, but luckily, he got a call about a possible intruder and split us up into groups to check out the different areas. I was in the outside group."

"Lucky you."

"Yeah." He touched my knee and squeezed it lightly. That one action suggested he'd been a lot closer to the blast than he was leading me to believe. "What's been happening with you? Besides p.i.s.sing off Jack, that is."

I grinned slightly. "He should know me well enough to realize there's no way known I'd throw the baby out with the bathwater."

"Any attempt to rescue that child could be dangerous."

"I know that. I have to try, though."

He smiled. "I know that. Just don't attempt it too soon, or the whole mission could fall down around our ears."

I glanced around to ensure there still wasn't anyone within listening range. "That might still happen given certain time frames have been upped."

"Yeah, Jack mentioned that. Give me a hand up, and we'll talk as you help me to my quarters."

I rose and offered him my hand. "Have the medics seen you?"

"One of the lab boys declared I was fit enough to move. I've been ordered to clean up and get back to work within the hour."

He grabbed my hand. I hauled him easily to his feet, then tucked a shoulder under his and wrapped my arm around his waist.

He didn't need the extra support-I could feel the strength in him and he wasn't the least bit shaky-but at least this way we could talk softly and take our time without raising suspicions in unwanted areas. "Nice of them to give you an hour."

"Yeah, they're all heart." His voice was dry. "So, what's been happening to you?"

"I've touched base with Merle, and learned I can read his thoughts."

"And?"

"And I now understand what you were trying to say when you asked me if I knew what I was doing."

He blew out a breath, and the sudden anguish that briefly flared in his eyes gave me some idea of what he'd been feeling over the last twenty-four hours. And it sure as h.e.l.l was worse than anything I'd actually been going through. I hugged him close for a moment, letting him know without words that I was okay, that it wasn't really as bad as he'd been imagining.

"It's never pleasant the first time."

"Does it get any easier the twentieth? Fiftieth?"

"Yes, because we are wolves and s.e.x is as important to us as air itself. You'll learn to switch off and just enjoy the moment, if not the person." His gaze met mine. "But that's easy for me to say when I'm not psychic and cannot ever feel things as deeply- or as intimately-as you do."

Some of the tension that had been with me for hours slithered away. He understood exactly what I was feeling, without me having to say a word. But then, if my twin didn't, who would? "It's not the s.e.x itself that worries me. h.e.l.l, I was with Talon for ages and I can't ever say that I actually liked him. With Merle, it was different. It felt like his foulness was invading my very essence. But Moss felt a hundred times worse, and if they all felt like that, I just couldn't do it. Jack's telling me I have no choice but-" "You'll always have at least one choice, even if you are forced into the system. You don't have to f.u.c.k them, sis. Not when you have the psychic strength to make them believe anything you want them to believe."

I blinked, and something that was either relief or joy or a mix of both ran through me. G.o.dd.a.m.n it, he was right. Even if I was forced into the system, I didn't have to play it entirely lack's way. It didn't matter whether the seduction was real or not, because that wasn't the point. Getting information was, and Jack couldn't complain as long as I was doing that.

Of course, Jack didn't just want me as an information gatherer, but as a full guardian-a hunter and a killer-but that was a whole different fight. And it certainly wasn't a place I was willing to go or even compromise on, even if he did drag me into the ranks.

I leaned forward and kissed Rhoan's cheek. "Thank you for clearing muddy thoughts."

He grinned. "Isn't that what big brothers are for?"

I smiled. He'd come howling into the world a whole two minutes before me. "That and rescuing little sisters when they bite off more than they can chew."

"Which thankfully hasn't happened in a while. Anything else I need to know about?"

I told him about the spirit lizard, then about Quinn's presence. He swore under his breath. "Jack's not going to be happy."

"Which is why I thought I'd leave it to you to tell him."

His brown eyes glimmered with amus.e.m.e.nt. "Coward."

"Yep." I looked up and noted that we were drawing closer to the guards' quarters. I needed to ask my questions before we ran out of time. "Did you see or feel anything unusual when you were scouting around the outside of the kitchen?"

He smiled. "I've a feeling you already know the answer." He reached into his pocket and withdrew a piece of cloth. "I saw a shifter pretending to nose through the rubbish. The minute I approached she ran, but I found this in amongst the rubbish. I think it must have dropped from a pocket during her original shapeshift."

"You didn't give chase?"

"I had no chance."

He handed me the cloth, which turned out to be a gray and white handkerchief. Just like the one that had been tucked into Nerida's breast pocket.

"It had a musky, feminine scent, but there was little in the way of perfume," he continued. "Given what it's been through recently, it now probably smells of nothing more than me and smoke."

I sniffed it. He was right. "One of my roommates is a werefox, and happened to be wearing a hanky like this earlier. I might go check she still is."

"Be careful with her. Foxes are as slippery as snakes."

"Or as cunning as foxes." He groaned at my admittedly bad pun, and I grinned. "So you think this werefox might have have something to do with the blast?"

"I have no idea, but she's certainly worth questioning. Just don't get caught doing so by the wrong people."

"I won't." I stopped as we neared the gate leading into the guards' quarters. There was a guard watching us, but the mere fact I couldn't read him said he was human. He wouldn't hear what we were saying as long as we went no closer. "One thing you do need to know-there's three underground floors that aren't on the plans. I have no idea what's on the first level, but there's a small research lab on sub-two, and Merle, Moss, and Starr have quarters on sub-three."

He nodded. "They told us that during briefing. Warned us that no one but the head of security and a.s.signed guards went down there."

"Did they mention the fact there's an escape tunnel leading from one of the sublevel floors out into the forest?" When he shook his head, I continued, "And there's also what looks to be a second elevator on the third level that no one else seems to be aware of."

"So how come you know about it?"

"I saw Merle key it open. When I asked Dia about it, she said it was a type of air lock provided for Starr's protection."

"But you don't believe she's telling the truth?"

"Oh, I believe she believes that's what it is. I just don't believe it is that."

"So the levels could go lower?"

"Why else would they have a secret elevator? If it went back up to the other levels, surely others would know about it?"

"It's a lead worth following. Though unless I can attract Starr's attention, I won't be the one following it."

A shiver ran down my spine. "Be careful with him. He doesn't walk in the same sane world as you and me."

"That's a given." He squeezed my shoulder then stepped away from my hold. "Keep in touch."

"I will. Just promise to be careful around your target. I have a bad feeling about him."

"That's because he's a bad man." He gave me a lopsided grin. "It's part of my job to a.s.sociate with, and then destroy, bad men."

"But this bad man seems to think he knows me, disguise or no. He's in our lire somehow, and the slightest slip could tip him off as to who we really arc."

"Warning heeded." He glanced briefly at the watching guard, then leaned forward to kiss my cheek. "Don't play with our friendly neighborhood stallion too much. You have got a job to do here, you know."

I gave him a light whack on the arm before he could jump away. He chuckled softly, gave me a wink, then walked off. I watched him until he was inside, then turned and headed for my own quarters.

The fighters' quarters were full, and most of the women were asleep. One or two were staring out the windows or chatting amongst themselves, but for the most part, silence reigned.

Berna was in bed and, as she'd warned earlier, snoring heavily enough to wake the dead. Or undead, as the case around here might be. Nerida wasn't in the room, and her toiletries bag was missing from the bedside table where she'd placed it earlier. But the sound of running water was coming from the bathroom.

Perfect. Just perfect.

I collected my still damp towel and soap, and headed to the bathroom. The water flicked off as I entered.

"Hey," Nerida said, "throw me the spare towel that's sitting near the basin, will you?"I quietly shut the door, dumped my towel and soap in a nearby stall, then moved over to grab Nerida's towel. "Catch," I said, and tossed it high, not over the door but at the camera in the corner above it. I might never have been tall enough to be a basketball player, but I was a pretty handy shot at goal. The towel landed precisely where I wanted it-catching the body of the camera and draping down over the edge of the lens. With the camera now covered and sound not an issue-thanks to the fact there were no microphones in the bathroom-I stepped forward, raised a foot, and kicked open the door.

"You stupid bit-" The rest of Nerida's curse was lost as the door slammed back against the stall wall.

She spun around, a look of shock and perhaps a little fear etching her features. I gave her no time to react any more than that, simply wrapped a hand around her throat and slammed her back against the wall.