by Krysta Scott
“What did he say they do?” She persisted.
He squinted and drummed a forefinger on his chin. “It wasn’t reading minds, exactly. It was more like mining a person’s subconscious to make them stop or do stuff. Grandfather was very loyal to them. Treated them like royalty. But the Guild always seemed a bit sketchy to me. Like they had an agenda of their own. I never saw it. But there were grumblings they destroyed people who got in their way.”
A cold chill passed through her. “How could they do that?” She didn’t know what she’d expected to hear but being able to reach people through their dreams was not it. Songe’s words came back to her. Don’t let anyone tell you you’re not a proper child of the Guild. You have great power. Don’t misuse it but feel free to test it out.
He shrugged. “I have no idea. I don’t believe in psychics. I just thought my grandfather was a bit nuts. But it wouldn’t be fair to say the Guild didn’t have an impact. When they were around things happened. Successful people failed when they shouldn’t. Then there were those who’d never done a good thing in their life all of a sudden gained a fortune and respect.”
A few days ago, Nikki might have thought the same thing. But that was before her little adventure into Guildville. Now she wasn’t so sure what she thought, and she’d hung up on Songe, the only person who could tell her. Left with no way to contact him, there was only one other to give her the answers she needed.
Garrett. Damn. The man she was warned to stay away from. But she had to know. She just had to.
Chapter Eight
Garrett scrutinized the photo he’d taken from Mr. Angelus. Nothing in the appearance indicated that it could give him any real answers. It was a typical depiction of family life when Nikki was young. At approximately age three, she rode a hobby horse, smiling as an adoring mother looked on. Her wide-toothed grin—finger in mouth, hamming it up for the camera—gave no indication that she was unhappy or that her childhood was complicated. It was a snapshot of a moment in Nikki’s life that was sane and normal. And yet, there were no pictures prior to this age. Something wasn’t right. A chunk of Nikki’s formative years was missing in the family photo montage. Garrett intended to find out why.
He stretched out on his office couch, the leather creaking as his weight settled into the cushions. He shut his eyes, relaxed his muscles, and allowed the silence to send him into nothingness. He fidgeted a little as he waited for sleep to claim him. Daytime was not his best casting period but with all the Guild shit going down lately, he hadn’t slept worth a damn anyway. Minutes later his body surrendered to unconsciousness and entered the slip stream.
Jorge Angelus’s mind proved no problem. The man had conveniently passed out and was ripe for the foraging. There were no walls or other obstructions to impede Garrett’s progress. He found the access route he needed to ask his question. Why are there no baby pictures of Nikki before the age of three?
Images swirled around in a gray fog with brief glimpses of activity. Jorge at the park with his family pushing Nikki on a swing, whoops of laughter filling the air. “Higher, daddy,” she screamed. “Higher.” Eva answering with her own laughter and Jorge proclaiming, “Look how high you are, Nikki, look how high.” A broad grin crossed his features at the sight of Nikki’s joy. Satisfied glances passed between the parents at their daughter’s happiness. A regular weekend afternoon for a typical family of three.
The image shifted to a hospital room. A small infant lay in the plastic hospital bed for newborns, a pink bow on her dark fuzzy hair. The baby sucked noisily on a tiny fist crammed into her mouth. Nikki sat on the edge of Eva’s hospital bed, examining the baby’s activity. She pointed. “Baby doll.” Eva giggled. “No, this is your little sister Cassandra.” Nikki’s small face screwed up in confusion until Jorge handed Cassie to Eva for feeding. As the baby was brought to her mother’s breast, panic lit Nikki’s face. “Mommy!!!” Eva smiled. “Come, sit next to us.” She patted the free area beside her in encouragement. Nikki patted her little sister’s arm while she breast fed.
The fog cleared and the weather turned colder. A much younger Jorge sat next to his wife patting her back as she wept. Eva rubbed her eyes with a tissue and wailed, “We’ll never have children.” Jorge pulled his wife closer and kissed her head. “Don’t worry. We’ll figure this out.”
A slight shift showed Jorge in an attorney’s office. To Garrett’s shock, he recognized the lawyer speaking. His hair was dark auburn rather than gray and the glasses thick rimmed rather than the wire, but there was no mistaking the man who studied Jorge with a somber expression. The head partner of Garrett’s firm, David Barnes.
“My client can give you what you want if you agree to his terms.” David peered over his glasses at Jorge.
“I understand.” Jorge acquiesced, but his fingers gripped the edge of the armrest, knuckles white under the pressure. “Are you sure no one will find out?”
A wide, self-assured grin spread across Barnes’ face. “Of course. There is no one to tell is there? The parents aren’t in a position to question any of this and my client will ensure they don’t.”
Jorge shook his head.
“Please understand, although she is three years old, she will not remember her past existence. Once placed in your home, she will already believe you are her true parents. There will be no adjustment period. It will be as if she was born to you and your wife and you are never ever to inform her she is adopted.”
“How can you guarantee that?” Jorge leaned forward, the muscles in his neck taut. “Surely she can remember where she was just before she comes to us.”
“Does it really matter?” Barnes moved to sit on the edge of his desk, his leg dangled in the air. He folded his hands at his waist and offered Jorge his most ingratiating look. “I can’t go into specifics, of course. But let’s just say there is a bit of tweaking. Brain washing—for lack of a better term.”
Jorge fixed Barnes with a horrified stare, lips in a tight thin line. His next words were short bursts. As if it cost him a great deal of strength to utter them. “Will it hurt?”
“Certainly not.” A condescending smile. “It is a completely painless process. Don’t worry. My client knows what he is doing.”
Jorge remained silent, his hands clasped together in a vice grip.
Garrett’s first thought was to urge Jorge to walk away from this maniacal deal. But he had no power to influence the past. All he could do was watch the events unfold. Instead, Garrett sent out his next inquiry. Who? He stiffened, preparing for a rush of new images that would reveal the man behind the adoption scam but they never came. Garrett remained rooted to this spot in time. Jorge didn’t know his strange benefactor which was odd because he seemed aware of the Guild dealings. Barnes continued his recitation of the rules.
“My client will be allowed access to the child’s information and progress in order to assure her family the child is thriving. However, no one but you will realize his true relationship to her.”
Jorge did know his benefactor. Silky tendrils of anxiety filtered through Garrett. Someone had blocked Jorge’s mind from revealing this particular piece of information. This powerful dream caster had to be Barnes’ client. Garrett continued to observe the scene, curbing his irritation. There were no shortcuts. Frustrating, but the answers would come in time.
“That won’t be a problem,” Jorge said.
“Good.” Barnes nodded, pleased. “My client requires pictures at least once a year.”
Although the request wasn’t so unusual, a shadow of suspicion skittered beneath Garrett’s awareness. There was something about this agreement that set him on edge.
Jorge shifted in his seat and made no direct eye contact with the attorney. Garrett had the impression that Jorge wanted to back out of the arrangement. In the end, Jorge just nodded. Somber but eager to wrap things up. “My wife desperately wants a child. I will do as you ask.”
Another shift. The atmosphere hummed with excitement in Judge Ratcliff’s
chambers. Ratcliff’s torso bulged with muscles. His biceps would be the envy of any football player. In his prime he had been an amazing running back but had declined a promising NFL career in favor of becoming an attorney. Service to his community was an important factor in his decision. But the bastard lost sight of his goal in favor of lining his pockets. A shady deal here and there, guaranteed fancy cars, summer homes, and women.
“How wonderful to see families willing to give an orphan a home.” Judge Ratcliff beamed as he passed the decree of adoption to the Angeluses.
“Sign here and here.” Barnes indicated to Eva. She bent over the paperwork, a smooth scratching on the surface before the decree was passed to Jorge, who followed suit.
“Congratulations, you are now the proud parents of a young girl.” Judge Ratcliff signed with a flourish and handed off the decree to Barnes.
It was done. Nikki was an Angelus. All ties to her previous life severed by an order of the court. Garrett clenched his jaw. It was wrong. What had happened was all wrong. What was worse, Jorge knew the child wasn’t in need of parents. He’d signed the documents knowing the transaction was illegal. All to avoid the hassle and to quickly offer his wife what she wanted most—a child. It was despicable the way the judge justified his actions with a wave of his hand over a file in order to create the ideal family.
But Nikki didn’t need a new family. No one paused to reflect that a child had been stolen—lost to her blood relatives. All for the sake of pandering to someone else’s need. Therein lay the crux that gnawed at Garratt’s insides. Then it occurred to him. This was all an experiment. Someone in Nikki’s family needed to sever her ties for their own hidden purposes. Whatever the reason, it was a fucking rotten thing to do to a child, let alone her parents.
Remorse burned a hollow groove inside him for such a dirty deed along with a deep seeded grief in the pit of his stomach. But it didn’t matter. Even having witnessed the images of the happy family events that followed the adoption. Nothing failed to erase the cold calculation it took to remove Nikki from her home obliterating her family history. She’d been wronged in a way that could never be recovered. Time was the one thing a person couldn’t buy back, even if she discovered the life she led was a lie.
A gentle nudge jostled Garrett awake. A face hovered over him, blurry at first, then his focus sharpened. “Nikki?” he muttered.
Somehow, she’d come to him. Had his dreams summoned her? Was that even possible? None of that mattered. What did matter was that her soft, full lips were only inches from his. He could see the pain buried in her green eyes. He now knew why it was there. His hands rose to rest gently on her upper arms, tugging her to him. She didn’t resist.
Her body slanted across his, breasts pressed against his chest. A low moan vibrated from his throat as his lips captured hers. Sweet. God, she tasted so sweet. Heat rushed to his loins. His tongue probed the warm recesses of her mouth. Need replaced reason. Mind-numbing desire overpowered any instinct to comfort.
Some part of his brain registered a change in the softness of her surrender. Her muscles tensed beneath his touch. She dragged her mouth from his, pushing against his chest, and vaulting upright.
A hand dragged jerkily through her hair before twisting it at her nape. “What the hell was that all about?” Green eyes flashed fire, her breaths coming in short gasps.
He was having a hard time breathing steadily too, but where hers were fueled by anger, his were due to the pounding hard on he was unsuccessfully trying to control. He gritted his teeth, coming fully awake. What an ass he’d made of himself.
“I’m sorry.” How could he explain that he’d been dreaming of her, that the sorrow she’d endured had touched him, made him want to comfort her? The lust had been a result of having a desirable, complex, yet vulnerable woman in his arms. But he couldn’t explain that to her. Nor could he explain what he’d learned. She wouldn’t believe him if he did.
Her lip curled with derision. “Don’t tell me you’re the type of guy that molests women in his sleep.”
He jerked to sitting. Her righteous indignation had the effect of a dive in ice water. Reason returned and, with it, irritation. Nothing like being caught in a compromising state. He shoved a hand through his hair. “Look, I said I was sorry and if I don’t miss my guess, you kissed back.”
She huffed as she straightened her suit jacket. Amusement touched him when she didn’t deny the accusation. He crossed his arms over his chest enjoying her scattered attempt to recover her equanimity. He raised an eyebrow questioning her presence not ready to utter the words. Garrett leaned against the thick leather savoring her discomfort. A flicker of movement drew his attention to the doorway.
“I’m sorry.” His breathless receptionist, Donna, stood in the threshold balancing precariously on thin high heels. Normally, he enjoyed the way her blouse dipped to reveal her cleavage or the way her hooker pumps elongated her shapely legs. Right now, the interruption was not welcome. “I just left my station for a moment to retrieve a brief for Mr. Morrison. She must have slipped in during that time.” He bit back a grin at her over-the-top husky tones. Donna glared at Nikki with distaste.
Garrett just wanted Donna to leave. “It’s okay, I, uh, needed to see her anyway.” He returned his attention to Nikki who had an engaging grimace marring her face
“Really? You needed to see me.” Her composure once more intact, she glowered at him. A gradual burn crept up his insides but he refused to squirm. She was the one interrupting his work not the other way around. He fixed her with a stare and smiled.
“Are you sure?” Garrett was startled by Donna’s simpering voice.
“I am,” he replied not taking his eyes off Nikki.
Nikki chewed her bottom lip swollen by their brief but pleasurable encounter. If Donna hadn’t been there, he’d try to finesse another kiss from Nikki. The need to have her near him, feel the heat of her embrace was undeniable. What a fascinating walking contradiction she was. Icy one moment and full of blazing passion the next. He hadn’t experienced this much desire in years.
“It was a mistake to come here. You’re not the one that can help me anyhow.” Nikki pushed past his receptionist disappearing from sight. Donna glanced at him and after Nikki. She remained frozen in place as if unable to decide whether it was better to stay put or chase after his unexpected guest.
Garrett was entertained at the amount of trouble one attractive, hot-headed attorney could stir up. “It’s okay, Donna, let her go. I have a question for you.”
Her shoulders relaxed. She let out a small sigh. “Yes?”
“Is David Barnes in?”
She considered a moment. “He hasn’t checked back in from court yet.”
“Notify me when he returns.”
****
Nikki stared at the stacks of files cluttering her desk and office floor. Needing something mindless to do, she sorted her cases into two piles. Attend to now and attend to later. She picked up the Baker file and slammed it into the Now pile, spilling its contents into the chair. Annoyed, she shoved the papers back into the folder and jerked up another case. McCracken’s case bulged in an already fraying accordion file. She thumped it on top of the other one a little more gently. Resentment blazed a trail of shame that rooted in her consciousness. She couldn’t let go of Garrett’s heated kiss. It was disgusting how alive she felt in his embrace. How her body had reacted to his touch.
She couldn’t fathom why her mind turned to jelly every time he was near. She banged another file into its designated pile. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t been around a multitude of men like him. Attorneys who wielded their power to suit their needs regardless of who it cost. She’d never been attracted to men like that. Not once. Until now.
No matter how hard she tried to push them away, the memories tumbled back on her. Weighing her down. Torturing her with tantalizing realism. His smooth firm jaw, his mouth firmly pressed against hers, opening, plundering hers, weakening her knees. The heat of his ch
est pushed against her breasts awakening a need she didn’t know existed. There was nothing rough or aggressive about that kiss but it wasn’t tentative either.
It was as if he had kissed her dozens of times and knew the exact amount of pressure to apply. Like he’d known her own mind. Her mouth went as dry as the sand under a cactus. After what she’d learned today, that was very possible. Had he visited her? Goose bumps pricked up her arm at the thought of Garrett rummaging through her mind garnering information about her. As disconcerting as that thought was, he hadn’t used whatever he found against her. Yes, his action was impertinent but the kiss was soft and tender giving her the impression he meant no harm. She exhaled slowly through her nose, cheeks hot at the real truth. She kissed him back and she’d wanted more. Much more. Groaning, her head fell in her hands. She’d been so flustered she couldn’t bring herself to ask about the Guild. Not with him taunting her with his naked sexuality.
How the hell was she supposed to handle the Hanover case when every time she found herself standing beside Garrett electric shock waves coursed through her? Just looking at him muddled her mind.
Nikki sank into her desk chair and stared at the two stacks, frustrated she’d made no real progress. All she’d accomplished was moving the files from one spot to another. Her head dropped onto her desk. She had to get her feelings under control. She was no longer a teenager pumped full of errant hormones. She was a grown woman who should be able to deal with the pitfalls dumped in her lap. She drew herself up. No matter how she felt, none of this was about her. It was about little Lori Hanover’s welfare. She had to focus on that.
Riffling through the papers, she located the Hanover file and went over the facts. Had she missed something? Anything? No. Studying the pages failed to unearth a single detail she could use to strengthen her position.