Authors: Lynn Viehl
Frostfire (28 page)
“I will go and resolve the issue in America,” she had said before the grim faces of the fourteen
padrones
. “If I return, I wish to be freed of all further obligations and released from service.”
padrones
. “If I return, I wish to be freed of all further obligations and released from service.”
She owed them four more years, and they had no one as effective as she had been in the field, so for them the bargain had been costly. At the same time they didn’t expect the American issue to end well, and Valori had always been disposable to them. She hadn’t been surprised at all when they had agreed to her terms.
Surviving this final task would be next to impossible, but Valori didn’t fear death as much as losing what was left of her soul. She was glad she had given in to the impulse to spend the night with the handsome young sheriff.
It was a sin
, Tomaseo said as he watched her work.
An act of selfishness. A mistake.
, Tomaseo said as he watched her work.
An act of selfishness. A mistake.
“Yes,” she agreed readily in Pat’s dry voice, “and every moment of it was much better than having two glasses of wine and twenty minutes with the vibrator in my nightstand.”
Poor Pat was like too many women in the world; she simply needed to be tied up and pleasured by a slow, thorough lover.
Valori reached to remove her bracelet before she accessed the electrical panel, but felt only bare skin. She took it off only when she worked near high voltage, and her flawless memory raced backward in time to the last time she had seen it. She had been paying the waitress at the diner after leaving Ethan. It had jangled on her wrist as she handed over the money. The clasp had been old and worn; she had meant to have it replaced....
She discarded Pat, shifting her thoughts back into Lori, and then flipped open her phone. After calling information for the number to the diner, she dialed it.
A tired voice answered, “Mel’s. What can I get for you?”
“Hi,” she said, adjusting her voice to Lori’s hesitant, partially apologetic tone. “I was wondering if anyone found a charm bracelet there? I think I might have dropped it when I stopped in for some coffee the other day.”
“Oh, yes, we did find it, honey,” the waitress said. “I gave it to your boyfriend when he came in later. He said he’d make sure to get it back to you.”
“My boyfriend, Ethan, the sheriff, has my bracelet?” Valori asked, just to be sure.
“Uh-huh. It’s safe and sound with him. I have to say, sweetheart, he wasn’t too happy about you leaving before him. But you know men.” The older woman sighed. “If they could keep us on a short leash, we’d all be wearing collars.”
“That we would,” Valori agreed. “Thanks for your help.” She ended the call.
So Ethan Jemmet had her bracelet, did he? Another man would keep it as a trophy of an easy conquest, perhaps, but not the sheriff. He had enjoyed their night together as much as she had, but her abrupt departure likely hurt his pride. No, she suspected Ethan would use the bracelet to try to find her, and while she could easily avoid that, any serious inquiries he might make could alert the council and otherwise interfere with her business.
His curiosity could cost you your life, Valori.
“Peace,
mentore
,” she murmured. “I don’t need the Evil Eye looking for me on this trip. Which, as we both know, will probably be the death of me.”
mentore
,” she murmured. “I don’t need the Evil Eye looking for me on this trip. Which, as we both know, will probably be the death of me.”
You must forget about him.
She nodded absently. “As soon as I get back my bracelet.”
As she remotely accessed GenHance’s security system, Valori opened a second window and ran a search on Ethan Jemmet. She already knew he was a Larimer County sheriff from the emblem she had seen on his truck. Within a few seconds she discovered that he lived and worked in a tiny mountain town west of Denver, and she then ran a MapQuest on Frenchman’s Pass. While that loaded, she used her primary window to bring up the feed from the facility’s security cameras covering the back platforms, all of which were empty.
The absence of the truck told her that Teresina had ignored her advice. She was going through with her plans to cheat her employers and fake her own death, and frame another for both crimes. Before being turned out by the council, Teresina had undergone years of training similar to Valori’s, and she had gone even further developing skills on her own. The odds of success weighed heavily in her favor.
Under the circumstances, stealing Teresina’s victory from her seemed almost obscene, but Valori could not allow her sympathy for Tomaseo’s wayward sister to compromise her own mission. Teresina would despise having to return to Italy and accept the protection of the council, but she was the last of her line; if she cooperated, she would be well treated, even pampered and indulged.
If she didn’t, she would spend the rest of her life imprisoned and at the mercy of the council anyway.
Valori checked the records for the missing truck, and discovered it carried a GPS unit. She accessed the satellite tracking network for the popular brand and pulled up the last twenty-four hours of activity, comparing the readings with her map of the region. The truck had taken an abrupt exit from the freeway and had traveled west of Denver up into the mountains. She frowned as she traced the path across the map with her fingertip; from that road there were no junctions that led to any cities or towns. Her second window blinked as the map to Frenchman’s Pass finished loading, and she glanced at it. The purple line indicating the route she would have to drive to reach Ethan Jemmet was identical to the path of the missing truck.
It’s not a coincidence. Evil forces are gathering, Valori, and you will be caught between them.
She needed to retrieve her bracelet and the bodies Teresina had stolen from GenHance. Now she could do both with one trip, and for once smiled her own smile, and answered Tomaseo with her own voice. “Not if I get there first,
mentore
.”
mentore
.”
The sun’s long descent toward the horizon poured golden light through the frosted glass, and roused Lilah from a delicious, dreamless sleep. It had been so long since she had slept in a room with normal windows that at first she didn’t understand the glow bathing her and Walker. Then she smiled, snuggling back against her lover and turning her face toward the warmth.
I don’t have to be alone anymore, and neither does he. We belong together. As long as we have each other, we’re safe.
You can’t stay here.
Another voice, one from long ago, echoed in her memory.
You can’t stay anywhere. If you do, people will discover what you are.
Another voice, one from long ago, echoed in her memory.
You can’t stay anywhere. If you do, people will discover what you are.
She answered the voice the same way she had ten years ago.
I’m not a monster.
I’m not a monster.
How long do you think you can control it? A week? A month? What happens when you lose your temper, or you simply have a bad dream? Does anyone deserve to die like that?
Carefully Lilah shifted out from under Walker’s arm, and silently rose from the bed to dress. Ten years ago she had made a promise to the man who had saved her life. She had never broken her word to him, not once. Not until she went up the mountain after Walker. Then she had discarded the most solemn vow of her life without a moment of hesitation.
I’m stronger now. I can control it. I can be with him.
She smelled coffee and followed it out of the room, and found Annie yawning over a steaming mug in the back kitchen. “Can you spare a cup or twelve of that?”
“I was just thinking I’d need a pot or two myself today,” the innkeeper confessed as she rose, smothering another yawn. “I never sleep in past dawn, but here it is one o’clock and I’m just now dragging myself out of bed.” She brought a clean mug to the table and filled it. “You take cream or sugar?”
“Only when someone doesn’t ask me.” She took a sip of the strong brew and sighed. “Which makes this perfect. Thanks for letting us sleep in.”
“Oh, I wasn’t going to bother you folks until sometime tomorrow,” Annie said, giving her a wink.
Lilah cringed a little inside, but also realized this was an opportunity to discover just how powerful her new ability was. “I thought I heard you walking around earlier,” she said carefully. “It was still pretty dark outside.”
The older woman shook her head. “I was out cold from the minute I lay my head on my pillow. The noise was probably the siding creaking. Sometimes the wind makes this place remember how old it is. Don’t let it spook you, honey.” She frowned as the front door to the inn opened and closed. “Excuse me, Mari.”
Annie left the kitchen, only to return a few moments later with Sheriff Jemmet. “Seems Ethan’s got nothing better to do than bedevil people today.” She turned to the sheriff. “Why don’t you sit down and have a cup of coffee like a civilized man before you ride herd on these young folks?”
“Thank you, Annie, but not now.” Ethan eyed Lilah. “Ms. Gordon, I need to speak to you and Mr. Kimball over at my office.”
“My boyfriend is—” Lilah broke off as she saw Walker appear in the doorway. “Right behind you,” she finished.
The sheriff turned around, staring at Walker for a long moment before he repeated his request.
“We just woke up,” Walker said softly. “Lilah needs to rest. Perhaps we could stop by your office later.”
“I need to settle this now,” Ethan told him. “I’ll wait while you get your coats.”
Walker met Lilah’s worried gaze before he said, “Very well. Give us five minutes, Sheriff.”
Lilah edged past Ethan and took Walker’s hand, trying to keep her pace slow as they walked down the hall toward their room. As soon as they were out of earshot, she glanced over her shoulder. “What do you think he wants?”
“Me, locked in a cell,” he said bluntly. “You, naked in his bed.”
“Not going to happen.” She slipped into the room and took their coats from the closet. “Don’t jump to conclusions, Walker. He may just want to question us again.”
“He could do that here,” Walker said as he helped her into her coat. “He knows something.”
“If he tries to lock us up, don’t fight him,” she warned. “All I have to do is touch him and I can alter his memory.”
He gave her an odd look. “Can you change mine?”
“Nope.” She moved in, putting her hands inside his coat and hugging his waist. “If I could, I’d definitely make you forget every other woman you’ve ever known.”
He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “You’ve already done that, my heart.”
When they emerged, Lilah saw Ethan standing at the end of the hall and watching the door to their room. As before, his eyes shifted to her first. For his benefit she produced a benign smile and clasped Walker’s hand as they walked toward him.
“Annie will bring over some breakfast for you,” Ethan said. The scowl on his face suggested he’d gotten an earful from the innkeeper about marching them over to his office before they’d had the chance to eat.
“That’s very kind of her,” Lilah said.
Outside the inn, the street was still somewhat deserted, although Lilah spotted a few shopkeepers shoveling off their doorways and steps. No one looked directly at them or Ethan Jemmet, but she got the distinct impression everyone watched them as they followed the sheriff into his office.
Something else bothered Lilah, something that had to do with the people and the stillness, but she couldn’t quite decide what it was.
Two chairs were sitting in front of Ethan’s desk, and Lilah saw an unlabeled folder on his blotter from which a fax protruded. She also noted his computer monitor, which was switched on and displayed an opening screen for Internet Explorer.
“Have a seat,” the sheriff said, not bothering to remove his coat or ask them for theirs as he went around the desk. He didn’t sit, but picked up the folder and opened it.
Lilah sat down by Walker, who was watching Ethan with unblinking intensity. She squeezed his hand, shaking her head a little when he glanced at her.
“The weather up here cuts off the pass from the outside world for most of the winter,” Ethan said, “but it seems this blizzard shifted earlier than expected, and didn’t have time to do its worst. I was able to run some background checks when I came in this morning.”
“On us,” Walker said.
“Yeah. I like to know who comes into my town.” He closed the folder and tossed it onto his desk. “According to the Marine Corps, Sergeant Kimball, you’re on active duty. You also went missing in Afghanistan nine weeks ago. Since you’re here and not there, that makes you AWOL.”
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