“My job is to protect you from all those scary freaks. Fucking you is a perk.” Robert pulled her to him and grabbed her by the hair as he ravaged her mouth. Tanya pushed him away and pretended to be annoyed. It was a game between them that she enjoyed immensely.
As Robert stood in his corner looking all tough and proper with his hands clasped in front of him, Tanya leaned back in Coben’s chair and waited for him to enter.
He opened the door dragging the dog beside him. Gabriel walked behind them, then stopped when he saw Tanya.
It took Coben a moment longer. “Will you take this animal please,” he said to Gabriel. Gabriel took the dog, and only then did Coben turn and notice Tanya.
“You were supposed to meet us in medical for the briefing.” He glared at her, obviously annoyed that she not only blew off an ordered meeting but had come, uninvited to his office.
Tanya waited a beat, and only then did she relinquish his chair. “I didn’t see the need. Gabriel was the one you needed, not me. Cross is already overwhelmed by the things he’s learned. When he’s ready, trust me, I will inform him what his place in all of this is. I have a feeling he isn’t going to like my rules one little bitty bit.” She slowly moved from behind the desk and let Coben sit in his chair. “Nice touch taking the dog.” She reached down to touch the lab on the head but the dog lifted a lip in a barely audible growl. She withdrew her hand and met Gabriel’s amused expression.
“Dogs are such excellent judges of character,” he said.
Tanya sneered at him and moved in front of Coben’s desk. “So Cross Delancey is finally back where he belongs. What I need to know now is, how dangerous is he? I won’t lose any more people to him. Tell me he’s unbalanced, tell me he’s a threat and I’ll send Robert down to medical right now to but a bullet in his head.” She spared Gabriel a caustic glance. “And I can guarantee Robert will not miss.”
“I thought you said you needed him not only to keep Kale in line, but for the things he can do,” Coben said.
“I do. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have options. I can control Kale with or without Cross. It would be easier with, but not impossible without. Just tell me he’s not a threat.”
Coben motioned to the live feed from medical still on his monitor. “I’m assuming you watched the interaction. Right now Cross is trying to figure out what we want from him. We’ve effectively removed all his support systems, outed Finn to him, introduced him to a father and a brother he thought were dead, told him his entire life was a fabrication. Hell, I even took away his dog.”
Tanya watched on the monitor as Cross was sedated to prepare him for transportation, as she ordered.
“All right, as long as you’re certain, then I guess Cross Delancey gets to live- for now. But I’m through coddling him, Coben. He is mine for the rest of his life, agreed?”
“Agreed,” Coben flicked the monitor off as Cross was being lifted from the hospital bed to a transport litter. “Cross is a smart guy. I’m sure he’ll figure out his place in the scheme of things on his own. I’m assuming security is in place.” He glanced at Robert standing still and silent in the corner.
“No worries, sir,” Robert said. “We’ve managed to contain more dangerous people than Cross Delancey. My team can handle him.”
“I hope so,” Coben said as he tidied his desk. “For everyone’s sake. Keep me informed. Maybe if he cooperates we can show him it’s not so bad. Maybe we can even give him the dog back if he behaves.” Coben looked at a smudge on his previously pristine desk top. Tanya glanced at Robert and smirked. Coben took a tissue from the dispenser and rubbed at the mark. “What about Kale?” Satisfied that the desk was once more spotless he balled the tissue up and tossed in the trash can.
“Leave Kale to me,” Tanya said. “It seems I have been a bit too lenient with him lately. That needs to change.”
“As long as everything is in its place,” Coben said.
“All neat and tidy,” Tanya said, a small smile on her lips. “You did well with Cross, Gabriel,” she said as she walked past him. “I think he might hate you most of all.” She gave the dog a wide berth and left the office with Robert at a respectable distance behind her. She could practically feel his eyes on her ass and regretted they hadn’t had the time for that quickie on Coben’s desk.
Chapter 6
GABRIEL STROKED THE dog’s silky ears. He could feel Niko’s anxiousness. Her world was in almost as much chaos as Cross’s. She whined and cried for Cross. Gabriel rested his hand on her head.
Animals were far less complicated than human beings. They operated on a simple set of directives. Dogs in particular were easy. Gabriel soothed Niko much the same way he had soothed Cross. In a way she could understand, Gabriel imparted to her that Cross was safe, she was safe. He asserted himself as pack leader and when he withdrew from her mind, she sat with her tail wagging, looking up at him waiting for him to tell her what to do next.
He liked dogs. They were very calming. When your life existed of trying to constantly filter out other people’s thoughts, when, if he let it, his world would consist of nothing but the voices in his head, a dog’s loyalty and simplicity was extremely comforting. Once, long ago, Gabriel had almost let the voices destroy him. But then he had learned how to control them. He allowed only the noise he wanted, in. It was a talent that had saved his sanity. He took Niko to the fenced in yard outside his quarters to do her business, and then made her comfortable inside.
He felt Tanya’s presence before she knocked on his door. She didn’t have to knock. They both understood that. For her to allow him the courtesy told Gabriel one thing – she wanted something from him and she wanted it badly. He waited until she knocked, his courtesy extended to her. She hated it when he acted on her intentions before she had a chance.
“Please come in,” he said from the sofa. Niko had curled up on his lap and he had no intention of disturbing her. Besides he was tired. They both knew his comfortable apartment and his lack of guards or locks were just illusions. Gabriel was just as much a prisoner at the department as Kale or now Cross. The difference was Gabriel had accepted his role, embraced it even. As a reward he was allowed this limited freedom and of course, the illusion. If he didn’t think about it too hard, it was almost as if it were his choice.
Tanya opened the door and let herself in. Behind her, was her ever-present shadow, Robert. Head of security and Tanya’s flavor of the month. He had lasted longer than the others though. Gabriel reluctantly had to give the man credit for tenacity at the very least. He did not make it a habit of exploring Tanya’s thoughts but from the little time he had been in her head, he understood one thing about her. Loyalty was not one of her best qualities. Tanya used people for what she could get from them and when they gave her everything they were capable of giving Tanya disposed of them. Apparently Robert had a lot to give.
“I need to talk to you,” Tanya said. She eyed Niko nervously. “Does that need to be here?”
Gabriel ran a hand over Niko’s head soothing both of them. He felt her dislike for Tanya and liked her all the more for that. “I promise she won’t bother you, but if it makes you more comfortable…”
Bedroom, please, Niko.
Niko jumped off the sofa and trotted down the hall to Gabriel’s bedroom. Gabriel raised his brows. “Better?”
Tanya gave a short exhale, something she did when annoyed. “I suppose it will have to do. Robert,” she spoke to the man without looking at him. “Wait for me outside.”
Gabriel couldn’t tell from the man’s body language but his thoughts betrayed him. He was not at all pleased at Tanya speaking to him like an underling. Even if that’s exactly what he was.
Robert closed the door behind him as Gabriel made himself comfortable.
“What can I do for you, Tanya?”
“I want to know your thoughts on Cross.”
“I already told Coben what I thought. You were there.” Gabriel wasn’t about to let Tanya know how tired he was. Tan
ya and the paranormal division made an art form out of using other people’s weaknesses against them. Gabriel knew that well. He’d lived the better part of his life exploited by his own weaknesses.
“I know what you told Coben. But I want you to tell me what you really think.”
“I would tell you to relax. Cross is, at the moment, emotionally and physically compromised. He is of no threat to anyone except perhaps to himself.”
“He won’t kill himself,” Tanya said. “He doesn’t fit the profile.”
“For once I agree with you. I saw nothing indicating that in my brief time linked with him. But not being suicidal does not necessarily mean he won’t cause himself harm.”
“So, what would be your advice concerning Cross?”
“I’d suggest to take it slow and don’t push him. Let him adapt to his circumstances, to the things he learned today. He has an entirely new reality to accept. Allow him the time to do that and then you can hammer him again. You plan on developing his abilities, as you did with me, with Maria, with Kale.”
Tanya said nothing. She just continued to watch Gabriel.
“If you want him, then you need to work with him, give him something in return.”
“The dog?”
Gabriel shrugged. “It would be a gesture he’d appreciate. Don’t make him fight you. You won’t get what you want from him that way.”
“You know, Gabriel, I think this might be a momentous occasion. I actually agree with you.”
“I still think this is a mistake,” Gabriel rubbed his eyes. They all seemed to forget that what he did for them taxed him. Removing the blocks from Cross’s mind had been a delicate process. One he almost didn’t manage. But what Gabriel learned in that brief time is what Tanya had come here for. If honesty is what she wanted, he would not disappoint her. “He’s dangerous. Maybe not now, but once he understands what he’s capable of, he will be.”
“We’ve watched him since he was fourteen, and he hasn’t proven that once. Whatever aggressive tendencies he might have had were altered by the bullet you put in his brain. I won’t kill him now just because he makes you nervous.”
He leaned forward and made sure Tanya was paying attention. “You’re the one who’s nervous and again I would say with good reason. But your need to exploit him is stronger than your good sense.”
“Careful Gabriel.”
“You wanted honesty? You wanted truth? Then listen to me carefully. This is a mistake,” he repeated. “Cross is a sleeping dragon.”
“Dragons don’t scare me,” she said.
“This one should.”
Tanya walked around his apartment completely at ease. She was a woman used to getting her way. She didn’t like being told she was wrong. A look of condescension settled across her features. Tanya Santiago was always so sure of herself. It would be her undoing, Gabriel was certain of that.
“I’ve waited ten years for this particular dragon of yours to show me his teeth. I don’t think he has any. I think you’re worried about nothing.” Tanya stopped in front of Gabriel still sitting calmly. “Tell me you can control him. Tell me, regardless of how dangerous you think he might be, that you can control him.”
It wouldn’t matter what Gabriel told her, Tanya wanted to hear only her version of the truth. He was too tired to have this conversation. He gave her what she wanted to hear. “He’s under control,” he said and then added in his mind- for now.
Tanya met Gabriel’s gaze with unnerving intensity. “Very good. I won’t forget your help with this Gabriel. I never forget those who are beneficial. We will talk later about how to proceed. Right now I need to bring Kale to heel. He has been a very bad boy.” She grinned and then turned to the door. “Don’t worry about your dragon, darling. I believe he is toothless.” She opened the door and walked past Robert without so much as a glance. Robert closed the door and Gabriel was left alone once more.
Niko came out from the bedroom and resumed her place in his lap. Tanya’s last words kept playing over in his head. He had a bad feeling about the way they were handling Cross. With his hand on Niko’s head he spoke to the closed door. “It’s not the teeth you have to worry about, my friend,” he said. “It’s the end of the dragon’s tail that’ll get you every time.”
Chapter 7
CROSS WOKE WITH woke with his hearing muffled and his memory shredded. There were holes in his memory he couldn’t account for and that scared him. He opened his eyes and shadows greeted him as did the musty scent a place accumulates when left unattended for too long. No echoes, no whisper of soft soled shoes. There was a feeling of emptiness about this place. He didn’t like it. If this was not medical and it wasn’t home, then where the hell was he? A TV was on in another room and the bed he lay in had no rails. He wasn’t restrained. Whoever put Cross here, didn’t worry about him going anywhere.
Out of habit he reached down for Niko only to remember she wasn’t there. That pang of loss hit him hard. He pushed it down and sat on the edge of the bed. A wave of dizziness rocked him for a moment and he waited for it to pass. When he searched the bed with his hands, he found a folded cane next to him on the covers.
Without Niko, the cane was the only way he had to find his way around. At least someone had thought about his needs. With one flick of his wrist he flipped the cane open and heard it lock into place. It wasn’t the one he was used to, but it was a reasonable replacement.
Someone had taken his glasses off again. He felt for and found a bedside table. Next to the lamp he nearly knocked over were his glasses. He must be in one of the secured apartments, but he’d never known how they were laid out. With one hand in front of him and his cane sweeping an arc at his feet he walked in slow halting steps, trying to find the door.
He was out of practice navigating an unfamiliar environment without Niko. First he bumped into the nightstand on the other side of the bed, which toppled the lamp sitting on it. The light bulb popped when it toppled to the floor.
“Shit.” He tried to avoid stepping on the broken glass, but something sharp pierced his heel. As he hopped on one foot, his cane bumped into something hard. A chair?
Frustration built. He was doing everything wrong. He stopped moving and listened. The muffled noise from the TV came from his left, so that’s where the door should be. Using the bed and the cane as guides he felt his way around with one hand extended in front of him until he felt the wall. From there it wasn’t too difficult to find the door. Before he had the doorknob in his hand the door opened. The volume from the TV increased and disoriented him. But then the scent of bacon and eggs made his stomach growl. He might still be pissed but that didn’t mean he wasn’t starving.
“I heard something break. You okay?” Finn took his elbow. Cross jerked free. The last person he wanted help from was Finn.
“Kind of a loaded question, considering the circumstances, don’t you think?”
Finn sighed.
Cross took a few hesitant steps into the living area and realized as much as didn’t want it, navigating would be a lot less frustrating with Finn’s help. He pushed the hair from his face. “Okay, you want to help me?”
Finn misunderstood and moved to guide his elbow.
Cross shook his head. “Not like that. Mind if I borrow your eyes for a minute or two? Just until I get my bearings.”
“What? Oh, yeah, sure. Have at it.” They had used the technique a few times over the years. Cross had the unique ability to enter a person’s mind and then literally see out of that person’s eyes. It wasn’t Cross’s sight, he was limited to the other person’s observations, but it did have its advantages. Like now, when he had no idea the layout of a new place. Finn could help orient him, so he could mentally map it.
Cross closed his eyes to shut out the shadows and took several calming breaths before sending his energy into Finn. When he felt entrenched in Finn’s consciousness, he opened his eyes. An immediate rush of light and color overwhelmed his senses. He rocked back a little. Even thou
gh he had been expecting it, the sensory overload got him every time. Finn took his arm and this time he didn’t object. Little by little his brain began to accept the stimuli and process it as his own even though the information came from Finn. The light dimmed to a comfortable level and the color spectrum evened out until Cross was seeing the room much as Finn did.
“You good?” Finn said. He turned to look at Cross. As a result, Cross saw himself. It was a weird moment when that happened. Seeing yourself literally through someone else’s eyes.
“Yeah. Just walk around the room slowly.” Cross stayed where he was as Finn did what he asked. The apartment was set up much like Cross had imagined. There was a small living area divided from a kitchenette and by a bar with a couple of stools. The front door was off to the left, and as Finn turned, Cross saw another door. Finn opened it to reveal a bathroom. Next was the bedroom door he had just left. As Finn walked in, Cross realized it was a lot smaller than he’d thought as he groped along the walls. The broken lamp lay on the floor, its shade dented.
“Walk the length and width of the room, will you? Count your steps.” It wouldn’t be a precise measurement, but it would help. When he crossed the room both ways, Finn came back to stand next to Cross once more.
“That’s good, I think I’ve got it,” Cross took hold of Finn’s arm. When he withdrew from Finn’s mind, there was a moment of nausea and dizziness. He steadied himself with a firm grip on Finn and opened his eyes.
“Okay?” Finn said.
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