by Tina Donahue
“Fifteen minutes.”
Lost time. “Kiss me.”
He did, with passion and what seemed like love, but wasn’t. Without the yearning driving her, she wasn’t his type of woman. She’d conned him into this and now his honor and integrity would see it through. It was more than she was worthy of. She told herself to be grateful for the moment.
He drew it out far longer than she’d hoped, then pressed his mouth lightly to her lashes and brow. “Try to go back to sleep.” His arms encircled her. “I’ll be right here when you wake up.”
It sounded so nice. Exactly what she wanted for the coming days, weeks and beyond. A future she couldn’t have. “And then?”
“I don’t know. We’ll figure it out.”
She wasn’t certain if his nonchalance was for her benefit or to convince himself. Her hand went to his chest. “My sisters and Ben are going to be shocked that you got out of the handcuffs. How’d you do that? Oh my God,” she suddenly said, a thought striking her, “Ben has your gun.”
“I have it.” He guided her head back to his shoulder. “Don’t worry. I put it in a safe place. And it doesn’t matter how I got out of the cuffs, when your sisters and Ben come up here I’ll take care of whatever happens. No one’s going to get hurt.”
Thirty minutes passed. Forty. An hour. He listened to Jasmine’s rhythmic breaths and the noises coming from downstairs. Ten minutes ago, the kitchen door had banged into the jamb, announcing Lily and Violet’s return.
Now, the front door shut with a wallop. Ben. Mike closed his eyes, listening to the boy sprint up the stairs, most likely with the disposable cell phone in hand. Right on cue, Ben’s heavy footfalls headed for this room. He turned the knob and stopped.
The delay said he didn’t understand why the door hadn’t opened. He tried again with the same result.
Mike lowered his gaze to Jasmine. Long lashes fanned above her cheeks. His mind begged Ben to go away, not to awaken her.
The younger man tried the knob repeatedly, refusing to believe. Cursing, he ran down the hall and into another room. Mike’s gaze darted to the door in the bath. The knob turned, useless against the lock. Ben punched the wood. His footfalls returned to the hall, tearing down it to Lily’s room. By the next sounds, he’d pushed open her door, realizing Jasmine was no longer inside.
He ran to the stairway, shouting her sisters’ names. Given the loud thudding, he took the steps three at a time.
Mike eased Jasmine to the mattress, scooting a pillow beneath her head. She mumbled indistinctly and continued to sleep. He left the bed as quietly as possible. His jeans were on and his fly zipped as three sets of footfalls dashed this way.
Ben yelled, “Give me the key!” He punched the door, the wall.
From behind, Jasmine murmured, “What was that? What’s going on?”
Mike put his hand out to keep her from leaving the bed. “Everything’s all right. Go back to sleep.”
The key rattled in the lock. Ben punched the wood again.
She cried, “No, it’s not. What’s going on?”
The lock clicked, the knob turned, the door flung open. Mike’s power stopped it from banging into the wall. Ben and the sisters didn’t note it or the buzz. They stood in a tight knot gaping at him.
Lily shouted, “How’d you get free?”
Violet cried, “Where’s Jas?”
“Here,” she said. Sheets rustled, the bedsprings creaked. “I’m okay.”
Ben stepped inside and bellowed, “You let him go?”
Mike placed himself between the boy and her. “I did it myself.”
Lily growled, “How?”
Time for the truth, not to mention getting their attention and cooperation by putting the fear of Mike into them. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and used his will to push Ben back. The younger man’s mouth opened with his staggering gait, his arms flailed, the door whisked closed and locked. Stunned silence filled the hall. In here, Jasmine stared at him as though he were more dangerous than Desiree.
He couldn’t blame her and spoke without preamble. “I’m telekinetic. I can move objects and people with my mind. It’s what got my partner Tommy killed. I diverted the bullet meant for me and it hit him instead.”
She clutched the sheet to her throat.
If she’d called him a coward, it couldn’t have hurt more. Freak, her expression cried, monster. Shame for what he was and could never change heated his cheeks, quieting his voice. “Jasmine, I swear, I won’t hurt you, your sisters, or Ben.”
She shook her head.
“I won’t,” he insisted, pulling his hands from his pockets only to press them at his sides at the look on her face. “I would never do anything to—”
She interrupted. “I don’t understand. Why did you wait until now to use your power or whatever you call it?”
He advanced a step, then retreated, not wanting to frighten her. “Before Tommy, I called it a gift I didn’t want. Since his death, I hadn’t used it. Between guilt over what happened with him and inactivity, I had a shitting hard time bringing it back, practicing every time I was alone in here. Do you want me to let them in?”
All three hammered on the door, cursing and shouting.
Her face turned to the ruckus. “You haven’t called the police?”
“I told you I wouldn’t do that and I won’t. I only contacted my friend Erica. She’s pulling up everything she can on Desiree and Connor. I give you my word, we’ll find her. This will be over.”
Her hand went to her temple. He wanted to argue, to convince, to make her want him again, to see him as a man not an aberration. Given the shock on her face, he knew it wasn’t possible. His head lowered.
“Let them in, please,” she said.
Mike willed the door to open. Not expecting it, Lily stumbled inside, fist upraised. Ben grabbed the back of her tee, righting her. Violet scurried past them. They spoke as one, their voices drowning out each other.
Jasmine shouted, “Shut up and listen to me!” She continued in a loud voice. “Mike hasn’t contacted the police. He called his friend. She’s looking for Desiree and Connor.”
Violet and Lily exchanged a glance. Ben glared at him. “You sent me to get that stupid phone and you already had yours?”
“Calm down.” Mike shoved his hands back into his pockets. “I didn’t get it until you left. And you sent yourself. I told you to let me use my cell.”
Lily circled Mike warily. “How’d you push Ben back and close the door? I didn’t see you touch him or it.”
Jasmine answered. “He’s telekinetic. He can move things and people with his mind. Because of something that happened in the Marshals Service, he wasn’t able to use his power until now.”
Violet’s eyes bulged. Ben looked partly appalled, partly impressed. Lily produced an unbelieving frown. “Telekinetic? Are you serious? You’re saying he’s like that girl in the movie Carrie?”
Mike arched one brow. “Not exactly. She had a much harder time in high school than I did.”
Violet laughed. It sounded hysterical.
“There’s nothing to be afraid of,” Jasmine said. “We hurt Mike, not the other way around. He’s doing everything he can to help me. Please, just leave, I want to be alone with him.”
Mike stared at her, not certain how to take what she’d said. The others didn’t move.
She cried, “Get to work! We have contracts to meet! Leave Mike and me alone!”
To hurry them along, he offered what everyone wanted to hear. “Before you unlocked the door, Jasmine had slept for an hour. She needs to get far more rest. I promise to take good care of her.”
Ben crossed his arms over his chest, his youthful bravado back. “I’m staying to make certain he does.”
Mike shook his head. “No, you’re not.”
The boy looked at Jasmine.
She spoke quietly. “Go to work, Ben.”
His face turned a deeper red with her dismissal, her siding with Mike over him. He
turned and left the room. Still frowning, Lily argued, “I don’t think we should leave him alone with you, Jas. We don’t know what he’s capable of doing.”
“If you don’t leave now,” she answered, “I’ll have him remove you.”
Lily gaped at her, swore beneath her breath and left the room in a huff.
Violet backed up, bumping into the jamb. Her head swung from it to them. “Let me know when you two want breakfast or lunch or dinner. Whatever’s good.” She shut the door.
Mike returned to the bed, though he didn’t dare get on the mattress. He had neither the courage nor the right. “You don’t have to say you’re okay with this if you’re not.” He lifted his shoulders, feeling like an adolescent waiting for the prom queen to reject him during a full school assembly. “You told them there wasn’t anything to be afraid of, and believe me, there’s not. Still, it would be hard for anyone to come to terms with what I am. Odd. Weird.” He sighed deeply. “Give me a minute and I’ll think of a more descriptive word.”
“Like awesome?”
“Huh? What?”
Her mouth quivered. “You heard me.” She dropped the sheet and opened her arms, welcoming him inside.
Mike hid his face in her neck so she couldn’t see his grateful tears. She held him as though she truly cared or felt a great deal of sympathy. He prayed it wasn’t the latter even as he warned himself not to hope. “I should have freed myself sooner.”
She kissed his cheek and held him even tighter, as though she wasn’t certain whether to be motherly or wanton. Smiling, he enjoyed both.
She whispered, “I’m glad you waited. I might have thought you were leaving and…” She didn’t finish.
“It’s okay. We’re going to fix this.”
Whimpering, she turned her face into his hair. “What if you can’t?”
“I will. I swear.” Hands on her shoulders, he drew back so he could see her face. Her eyes were as wet as his. “When I call Erica, I’d like her to have all the information she needs. Is there anything you haven’t told me about Connor?”
“Not that I can think of.” Moving back into his chest, she rubbed her nose against the base of his neck. “I have some research notes on him, old addresses and stuff, on my office laptop. I could get it for you.”
“Later. Right now, I want you to try to sleep.”
Chapter Thirteen
The morning passed effortlessly, the first time in more than five months.
Intermittently, Jasmine heard Mike speaking on his cell, presumably to Erica, asking for information from her and providing it to her from the laptop on the mattress. Jasmine’s sleep had been so profound, she hadn’t noticed him leaving the room to get the computer.
Awake finally, she watched him as he worked. His large hands skipped over the keyboard. His hair caught on the top of his ear, falling forward. Annoyed, he pushed it back and frowned at what he saw on the screen.
Another dead end?
A part of her hoped, an equal part feared. She couldn’t expect him to stay here forever, helping her. He’d promised this would be over. He hadn’t said in what way. By finding Desiree and forcing her to stop the madness? Or by having it end on its own when it killed? And it surely would.
Even with her rest, Jasmine sensed the curse lurking, waiting for its next chance, an opening in her defenses.
“Hey, you.” Mike tilted his head, noticing she’d awakened. He studied her. “Everything all right?”
She lied with a smile. “I’m good.”
“No, you’re not. Your stomach’s growling.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s about time for lunch.”
“Have you or Erica found anything out yet?”
He dropped his hand, drumming his fingers on his knee. “A little.”
“Tell me? Even if it’s bad.”
“It’s not bad. It’s just not where we want to be. But we will get there, I promise you.” He held her chin between his thumb and forefinger, giving her a fast kiss.
Her lids opened, she asked, “What did you find out?”
Mike saved the file he’d been working on and turned to her. “Connor didn’t take a leave of absence from his job. He quit. His position’s been filled. His condo has a new owner. There’s no forwarding order on his mail. His driver’s license and tags were up for renewal a couple of weeks ago. He let them expire. All activity has stopped on his social security number and credit cards. He made a six-figure income for approximately eight years with the Hemmler Group and had a healthy portfolio of investments many would kill for in this economy. He liquidated everything five months ago and cleaned out his bank accounts. Right now, we’re figuring he’s living on cash and if he’s reinvested any of the funds, it’s in the name of someone he trusts so he can’t be traced.”
Her breathing sounded too loud, troubled. “Why are you focusing on him? Didn’t you find anything on Desiree?”
“Not yet.” His hand covered her wrist. “The Wanderers don’t like to leave the typical paper trails like birth certificates, tax ID numbers, records of school attendance or doctor visits. When she confronted you, did she say where she had first met Connor? Where he took her on their dates?”
“No. Why? Do you think she’d be frequenting those places in the hope of seeing him again?”
“It’s always possible. We’ll know for certain once we find him.”
“If he’s using cash, how can you?”
“The usual way.” He smiled, the kind a sage teacher gives a naïve pupil. “People just don’t drop out of sight and start new lives without help. Believe me, I know.”
“You mean your work with the service.”
“Exactly. The witnesses I protected were clueless as to how to keep a low profile. They all shared the same fatal flaw—a desire for the known. It’s what fucks them up every time. Making contact with someone from their past, engaging in a hobby or activity they’ve always liked. Connor’s no different. My guess is he’s not that far away. And we’ll certainly find him. It may just take a little longer than I’d hoped.” He squeezed her wrist. “Want me to get some lunch for you and bring it up here?”
“It would be easier for us to eat downstairs. While we do, I can tell the others what you’ve found out.”
Jasmine brought another chair to the table for Mike. Violet heaped his plate with two Monte Cristo sandwiches, warm syrup, a mound of home fries and several slices of cantaloupe. Lily nibbled on a sweet pickle, watching him eat.
“Something wrong?” he asked her.
She swallowed. “Pass me the salt.”
He did.
Her brows drew together. “I need the home fries.”
He placed the bowl in front of her.
“And a napkin,” she added.
He reached for them.
Jasmine spoke up. “Lil, knock it off.” Her sister intended to ask Mike for everything in the house until he willed it to her with his power.
“What?” the girl asked, feigning innocence.
Jasmine arched a brow and reached for the pepper at the same moment Ben did. Their fingers touched. She snatched back her hand and regretted it immediately, seeing the hurt on his face. His pain, along with her memories of their one sexual encounter, heated her throat and cheeks. She couldn’t think of any consoling words, nor would she encourage him. It wouldn’t be fair to Ben. She loved Mike.
Slouched over his food, Ben ate listlessly while she told him and the others what Mike uncovered about Connor, adding that Desiree might be trying to find him at the places they used to go.
“Sounds right to me.” Lily pointed her cantaloupe as she talked. “All we have to do is hang out at the local spots and corner her when she shows up.”
“If we take into account all the clubs, bars, restaurants and various attractions, it would mean hundreds of places.” Mike finished his lemonade. He shook the glass, rattling the ice. “We could keep missing her. It would take forever.”
Grabbing her fork, she stabbed a home fry. “You h
ave a better suggestion?”
Jasmine did. “I’ll help with the research on Connor so we’ll find him that much quicker and learn where they went.”
“No.” Mike speared another slice of cantaloupe. “When we go upstairs, you’re going to sleep.”
She frowned. “What about you? You’ve been up since yesterday.”
He finished his chew and swallowed. “I caught a few hours while you snoozed.”
“That’s not enough.”
“Sure it is. I think I know how much rest I need.”
“Just like I know that about myself, so don’t presume you understand me better than I do.”
His brows arched at her sharp comment.
She refused to back down. The only way out of this for him was for her to find Connor and Desiree as quickly as possible. The restlessness had returned. Behind it would be lust. If it claimed her, she wanted it to be because she’d failed, not Mike. She couldn’t burden him with new guilt for not having protected her. “Give me what Erica’s found so far, show me how to dig deeper. While I do that work, you can get back to your consulting job and whatever agencies you have contracts with.”
Ben mumbled, “Homeland Security, INS, the Florida Department of Corrections. There may be others. I didn’t go through all of his emails.” He turned his head to Mike. “You’re leaving?”
“No.” He’d looked at Jasmine with his answer. “I’m seeing this through. You can help if you want, but you’re also going to sleep. I’ll make damned sure of it.”
Lily’s pale brows rose. Violet’s blush reached the tips of her ears. Ben pushed away from the table and left the room. They knew the only way Mike could be certain she rested was to slake her desire by making love to her.
The remainder of the meal passed quickly and in silence. Thoughts of Mike mounting her dominated Jasmine’s mind, constricting her nipples, dampening her pussy, stoking her need of him. Hands shaking, she put her plate in the dishwasher and went down the hall. At the end of it she saw Ben, his elbow propped against the wall, head in his hand. Hearing her approach, he dropped his arm and turned. She moved to her right just as he moved to his left. They danced back and forth, getting in each other’s way.