“Oh no!” Her first wild thought was, how could they? She’d seen him in action. Day or night, Rhodri wouldn’t be an easy man to overcome. “What makes you think that?” Her heart beating fast, she needed to listen so she could control her raging thoughts.
Esti fixed her with a cold stare. “We were in a holding pattern with Wilkinson, and the backroom geeks were doing their job. After our last operation, he said he had personal business to deal with, so he came here and promised to remain on call. That means leaving part of his mind open to me and keeping his mobile phone on. He contacted Grady about something that bothered him. Do you know what that was?”
“He wanted to check on my parents for me. They were killed during a demo in London, and the Department looked after them.”
“The problem is,” Kai said, “the Department has no record of that happening.”
Cerys listened to him dully, knowing she needed to process all this fast.
Kai spoke steadily and to the point. “Rhodri called Grady about your parents, and he did some research. We’ve since researched in more depth. The Department didn’t pick them up, and they didn’t appear in any of the hospitals dedicated to the treatment of Talents. Just to make sure, we searched the records of all the hospitals at that time, in case they were brought in off the street. No sign. Cerys, it’s likely that they were captured too. You know about the labs?”
She swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. “They told me that was one reason they wanted me to keep very quiet about what I was. That people experimented on Talents.” And Rhodri had reinforced that warning.
“Admirable,” Kai murmured. “Are you up to this? It’s a lot to take in all at once, but we need some things from you, and we need them fast.”
“What?”
“Esti needs to search your mind. We’d examine all the memories of Rhodri that you have, and all the ones of your parents too. If it helps, Esti is in the nature of a doctor here. Anything not specifically relevant to the information we need is safe with her. She won’t disclose it to anyone.”
“Anything,” was her first response. “Do anything you need to do.” They could tear her apart if they liked. Guilt ripped through her brain. Had Rhodri somehow initiated his own capture by making inquiries about her parents? “Before Rhodri arrived, nobody knew I was a real child of my parents. They formally adopted me, even though I’m the only child of their blood. They said it was safer, and people might think I wasn’t a vampire, just an adopted mortal. Another smokescreen, they said.”
“They took great care of you,” Esti said. Cerys was only beginning to understand how much care they’d taken. The nomadic existence, everything designed to obfuscate her, to shelter her and keep her safe. She hadn’t thought she could miss them any more than she did. She was wrong.
Esti leaned forward, gazing at her. “If you relax, it won’t hurt as much, but I have to penetrate deep, and it might be painful. I don’t want to do it tonight, because you are in possession of your full powers. Tomorrow when you’re in human form would be better. Your barriers will be easier for me to get into, and I won’t give you as much pain.”
Cerys got to her feet. “I can’t believe this happened and he didn’t call out. He just—wasn’t there. I thought he’d gone. We didn’t know each other for long.”
Kai rose too, towering over her. He had to be six feet four at least. “I will take you back to your flat. You need your sleep.”
Esti nodded. “If you could come back tomorrow, I’ll examine you, and then we’ll know what to do.”
* * *
On the way back, Cerys couldn’t resist. “You said husband
and
wife?”
He grinned. “Yes. Many merpeople are bisexual, and we often live in ménage relationships.”
“
Merpeople?
” She stopped and stared at him in shock.
He faced her, the grin still present. “You’ve never met one before?” He motioned toward the sea. “I refuse to believe that none of my kind has settled in this pretty town. I’m tempted to bring Tyler and Zoe for a visit when we’ve sorted out our current problems.”
She swallowed. “Wow.” She turned and continued to walk, although she could have stared at him for much longer. He didn’t look “normal,” whatever that was. With that hair and the light blue eyes, he could never be anything but striking, but she hadn’t received a merman vibe off him.
She was dying to ask what a threesome was like. Who decided who did what? She decided on a different tack. “Don’t you get jealous?”
“Of what?” He frowned. “I love Tyler, and I love Zoe. I’m very lucky. I was in a relationship before, but it became clear that the other two loved each other more than they did me. I was tired of being the third. I wanted an equal relationship, be that with a man, a woman, or both.”
“Wow,” she said again.
“It is also useful at times like these.” He frowned. “Our adversary attacks those of us on his case by taking our loved ones, the weaker part of the relationship, or so he thinks. So I’m fortunate in that Tyler can safeguard Zoe when I’m away. She’s newly converted, so she’s still finding her way.”
“Rhodri is converted,” she said abruptly.
“Yes, he is.” His expression turned grim, his mobile mouth in a tight, straight line.
“And you’re part of the team?”
“Indeed I am. Either we were dragged in or assigned. We worked out of London originally, but Wilkinson moves. He went to Italy for a time. Now we believe he’s back in Britain somewhere. He leads. We chase. But it will stop, and soon.”
The way he was speaking, she was sure of it.
He regarded her. “We want to ensure that nobody is watching you or following you. We won’t leave you unprotected, not until we’ve rooted the bastard out. And destroyed him.”
He said the last part so matter-of-factly that she almost missed it. She paused, thought it over. “Destroyed him?”
“He’s injured and killed too many Talents to be allowed to continue. We have the tacit permission of the agency we work for. It means that if we’re caught, we’re breaking the law, but the agency will extricate us.” He bared his teeth. “Or we’ll do it ourselves.”
“He’s irredeemable?” She hated to think that anyone was past saving.
“Yes.”
They’d arrived at her flat. She turned to thank him, but although she felt the strong waves of his power emanating from him, he had none of the appeal Rhodri held for her. That relieved her. She’d wondered if part of Rhodri’s attraction was that he was another Talent when she was starved for them. But now, meeting this admittedly attractive man, one who fascinated her at an intellectual level, she recognized her feelings for Rhodri were more than that.
Kai shook his head. “You should ask Esti to teach you how to mask your feelings better. You love him, don’t you?”
Hearing her inner thoughts articulated could get old really fast. She grimaced. “I think so.”
“And you communicated. How deeply, I wonder?” A thoughtful look crossed his face. “He must have trusted you to let you in so far.” He shrugged. “No matter. Not tonight. Sleep well, Cerys. Are you working tomorrow?”
“Not until late. I’m on late shift all this week.”
He nodded. “Call us when you wake up. Just open your mind to Esti. We’ll come for you.”
“I could come to the hotel.”
“Not until we know more. Please. This man is dangerous. I’d rather take extra precautions than lose you.”
Lose her? Cerys shuddered and reached in her pocket for her keys. “Okay. I’m on the top floor. If you come around at noon, I’ll be up.”
He nodded and took her hand. “Until then.”
He did have a particularly sweet smile. But she’d rather see Rhodri’s dark chocolate gaze right now.
Chapter Nine
It took Cerys some time to fall asleep, wondering about the turn her life was taking and if she’d ever know normal again. Worrying about Rhodri. This was worse than believing he’d left her. She’d rather have him alive and with someone else than dead. That puzzled her too, since she wanted him for herself.
Still fretting, her mind going in circles, she finally fell asleep.
If not for her mobile phone going off, she’d probably have slept past midday. But she had to get out of bed to find it in the pocket of yesterday’s jeans, and by then she was awake. “Are you ready to receive us?”
Kai. Ah yes, great. That was the other thing. In broad daylight, she was a mortal, nothing else. She was about to invite two hugely powerful beings into her flat. “Come right over,” she said brightly. “About twenty minutes?”
“Fine.”
That gave her time to shower and dress. She glanced out the window. Nice day, fine clouds scudding across the sky, and the sea only slightly choppy. She’d have enjoyed a walk along the promenade today. After giving the view a last wistful look, she crossed to her kitchen area and filled the kettle. She grabbed a slice of bread and popped it into the toaster, only giving a passing thought to the full breakfast her visitors had probably enjoyed. She’d go to the chippie later, get fresh fish and chips. Nothing like fresh fish eaten within sight of the sea.
Precisely twenty minutes after the phone call, her bell rang. She had to go downstairs to answer it as her landlord hadn’t installed an automatic device to open the door. He’d said it wasn’t safe. Cost too much, more like. But it had never bothered her before. She had friends, but they usually met her elsewhere, so she didn’t have to run up and down stairs too often.
They didn’t turn their noses up as they entered, even though Kai sniffed suspiciously. Without commenting, she led the way back upstairs and into her flat. Kai grinned. “I like it. A cozy nest. But don’t you own the whole house? I saw your parents’ names on deeds when I did some research into your address last night.”
She sighed. “No, my parents sold it shortly before they went to London. They were never good with money. If they put the money anywhere, I didn’t find it. I guess I’m not good with money, either. The landlord let me stay as a sitting tenant.”
Esti frowned, a small crease appearing between her perfectly groomed eyebrows. “They should have had some. Enough to care for you.”
“I’m doing okay.” She turned around. “Would you like some tea?”
“That would be perfect.” Belatedly Cerys remembered Esti’s American accent.
“Or I can offer you coffee.”
But Esti wasn’t looking at her. She was staring at a spot just above the window. Cerys squinted past the bright sunlight streaming in to see something glinting. A stray sequin from her party dress, perhaps?
Kai had already left the room.
They heard a crash, and when Cerys would have gone to see what the problem was, Esti caught her arm. “No, let Kai do this. See that?” She indicated the sparkle. “That, my dear, is a camera lens.”
Behind her the kettle boiled and clicked off.
Yells came from next door; then Kai reappeared in her doorway, one large hand wrapped around the scrawny neck of her neighbor. “Talk me through this,” he said. “How does recording your neighbor count as ‘watching out for her’?”
“I-I—” The man stammered, then choked. “Let me go, you fucking cunt! Fucking bully!”
“You want to talk about bullies?” Kai’s lip curled. “How about having a hidden camera in someone else’s place?” Holding the squirming man with no more effort than he might have held a stray dog, he addressed Esti. “If you go into his place, you’ll find a laptop hooked up to that camera. If you wouldn’t mind bringing that, and any flash drives or DVDs you might find, that might make it easier for him to explain. Bring his mobile phone, any tablets, anything that connects to the outside world too.”
The man at the end of Kai’s choke hold didn’t seem impressed, but Esti went past them and reappeared quickly with the required articles. At Kai’s raised brow, she explained, “We’ll get the rest later. I’m sure he’s hidden something under the floorboards or somewhere else.”
Esti opened up the laptop. Cerys didn’t want to look, and when she moved—despite her better judgment—so she could see the screen, Esti closed it. “No,” she said. “You don’t need to see this.”
“What do you want me to do with him?” Kai asked. “I can kill him, put him back, or call the police.”
“Put him back,” Esti said. “I’ll fix him in place until we’ve had time to deal with him.” She looked up and caught the attention of the trembling man. “You can’t leave your room for the next week. If you do, you’ll have a heart attack and die.” She said it in a completely matter-of-fact tone, but Cerys gripped the chair rail as the back draft of power nearly knocked her down. Fuck knew what the hapless—no, make that utter bastard—felt. He deserved it all.
Compulsion, officially illegal among Talents, but she wasn’t about to tell anyone. Kai nodded and dragged the guy back to his place. The door slammed, and Kai returned. “Find anything?”
Esti hadn’t opened the computer again until Cerys moved away. But now she said, “Yes. I’ll fast-forward a lot of stuff. He records all day and then files the recording. Some of them are edited to take out all the shots of a blank room or of Cerys getting herself something to eat, stuff like that. I found the files from the time Rhodri disappeared. Both of you, come and look at this.”
Cerys returned to stand behind the chair. Kai crossed to her side. “I gave Rhodri a key,” Cerys told them. “He said he didn’t need it, and he could break in too easily. He was supposed to get the landlord to fit a new lock for me.” Then he’d asked her to move into his house. Had he suspected this camera was here?
Yes, he had. She watched the film of Rhodri entering this room. He put a parcel down on the bed and glanced at the camera. His mouth firmed. That beautiful mouth that had kissed hers so many times. Even seeing this made Cerys yearn for him. Just one touch, one more memory. But she knew that would never be enough.
He turned as someone entered the room. It wasn’t her sleazy neighbor. It was someone she didn’t know, a dark man. “Oh fuck,” Kai murmured. “I know him. I’ve seen him before.”
Rhodri waved his arms, advancing on the man. There was a fight, a short one, but his attacker turned Rhodri so he never saw the other man who entered through the main door and jabbed him in the neck with a syringe. The next minute, Rhodri went limp. They propped him up between them and went out.