by Desiree Holt
Back in his study, he opened the bar in the cabinet and poured an inch of Crown Royal into a shot glass and tossed it back. Then he picked up the phone and punched speed dial for a number he was growing more and more reluctant to call.
“Faith Wilding was just here. You should know she’s suddenly decided to write about Special Operations. Something completely different from all her other books.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Do you think she knows anything?”
“I don’t see how she could. But it seems Halloran’s a friend of hers, which makes me a little nervous. She says she wants to talk to his CO, maybe find out what his current mission is.”
“Well, shit. Isn’t that just dandy. Just how close is she to Halloran?”
Winslow shrugged, even though no one could see him. “It can’t be much of a relationship if we don’t have it on our list.”
“Just the same, we need to check it out. You know how that stuff can sometimes slip through if it’s way under the radar. This is an anomaly and you know how I hate that. What did she want with you, anyway?”
“An appointment with John Gregorio.”
The voice on the other end barked a sharp laugh. “I don’t like the sound of that. Why Halloran’s CO? Why not just any Delta Force officer?”
“That’s why I called you. I got the same reaction.”
“She’ll get nothing out of Gregorio. Even we can’t get him to open his mouth.”
“But we certainly can’t have her running around asking questions willy-nilly. That wouldn’t be good for either side of the fence we’re sitting on. That’s the only reason I’m doing it. Maybe if she hits a wall she’ll give it up.”
“Just the same, have someone look into it. You have better resources than I do. Check her out thoroughly.”
“Fine. Let me know what you find out.”
* * * * *
Mr. Green didn’t enjoy the telephone call he got, either.
“Not one trace,” he repeated. “We questioned everyone in the area. A few people vaguely remembered a black panel van but no one paid attention to the license plates, or even which direction the van went.”
“Damn.” The voice on the other end was harsh. “There’ll be hell to pay over this. Don’t think you won’t come in for your share.”
Mr. Green knew an apology was useless. He was not expected to make mistakes. When he did the focus of his world shifted in a bad direction.
“I’ll keep looking.”
“No.” Sharp. Cutting. “Any more questions and you’ll call too much attention to the situation. Go home and wait for my call. I’ll have someone do a more thorough check on Latrobe and see if we turn anything up there.”
“What about the brother?” Mr. Green asked.
“That’s where we’ll start. He supposedly works for a consulting firm called Phoenix. I think that’s where we’ll start.”
“You’ll call me?”
“When I have something.”
Mr. Green disconnected the call.
“What did he say?” Mr. Brown stood nervously to the side.
“Nothing good.”
Chapter Ten
She hadn’t eaten much of her lunch and although her appetite lagged her stomach was grumbling. Tossing her purse on the table and kicking off her shoes, Faith ordered a light supper from room service. Then she headed for the shower, pulling her clothes off as she went.
She had just reached to turn on the water when the pain hit her, doubling her over. Just like the other day, searing and sharp, like a thousand fire ants burrowing into her skin. She gasped, trying to suck air into her lungs and ride it out. Consumed by it, she sank to the tiled floor, leaning against the tub.
Help me.
Mark! I’m here.
Don’t…name…
What? She could barely focus her mind over the racking pain.
Name…who you are…
Sweat covered her body as she tried for deep breaths, willing the pain to subside. Whatever hell Mark was in must be worse than anything she could imagine. She gritted her teeth and at last the intense agony eased, allowing her to concentrate on the messages.
Names. What did he mean? Whose name? Hers?
Of course. She couldn’t believe she was so dense. Whoever the telepath was in the group was trying to intercept their messages and discover her identity.
I get it.
A long silence. Then Good.
She was awed at the inner strength he had that allowed him to hang on through whatever torture he was being subjected to. God, she had to move faster. But how?
Hang on, Mark. I promise I’ll get you out of there.
And then, just like before, the presence of a dark evil rolled over her, almost choking her. She closed her eyes and huddled against the tub until at last the feeling dissipated. Then she hauled herself into the shower and stood under the water for a long time. By the time she’d dried off, pulled on her robe and admitted the room service waiter she was feeling halfway to normal again.
Except, of course, for the sickening feeling of dread lodged in her stomach. Before she sat down to eat, she pulled out her cell phone and punched in the number for Phoenix again.
“I’m still trying to reach Eric Latrobe. Please call me at any time. It’s urgent.”
And tomorrow, with or without Trey Winslow, she’d make John Gregorio talk to her.
* * * * *
If I get out of here, I’m going to take each of these bastards and skin them alive.
Mark kept himself together by repeating this to himself over and over. Nothing he’d been through in all his years in the Army could even come close to this and he’d been helpless at the hands of some real badass people during that time.
He was sure the multiple cuts on his body were infected. It was impossible for them not to be, as dirty as he was. It was a miracle the cut on his leg wasn’t worse than it was.
Tidbit!
He had to keep himself from thinking her name but at least he could call up her face. And the memories of that unbelievable weekend. Why had he been such an egotistical ass, thinking his career came before anything else? Thinking he had all the time in the world to tell Faith how he felt about her? To think about a life together? If he got out of this hellhole in one piece, the first thing he planned to do was put a ring on her finger.
He closed his eyes and at once her image came to him. The lushness of her naked body. The dusky nipples tipping the firm, round breasts. And the scent of her arousal.
This time he imagined her spread out on a bed, her arms pulled back over her head and her wrists bound to the headboard with soft, silk scarves. He was kneeling between her legs, a bowl of warm water braced with a towel beside him. Heat poured out of him like liquid lust as his eyes quite literally ate her up.
“I’ve dreamed about seeing this gorgeous pussy stark naked,” he told her, carefully spraying thick shaving cream over her pubic curls. “Some nights I got so horny just thinking about it I could only get relief by jacking off.”
And that was no lie. Sometimes, hiding out in the worst places, he pushed away the rest of the world by fantasizing about just this very thing, wanting her so badly it was almost painful.
The flush spreading over her body told him how much his words aroused her.
“Your skin will be so sensitive once it’s all shaved,” he went on. “I’ll bet I can make you come just by lapping you once with my tongue.”
Dipping his razor in the bowl of water, he drew it through the curls in long, smooth glides. One stroke, then another, dipping his razor in the water and rinsing it after each one. With thumb and forefinger he pulled each out lip taut to get at every strand of hair, working carefully so he didn’t miss even one tiny area. And as he worked he told her in his soft Texas drawl exactly what he was going to do to her. With her.
“You know, darlin’, I was in Hong Kong one weekend, between assignments, and I passed by this interesting little shop.”
>
“Oh?” The word was barely a whisper.
“Uh-huh. I couldn’t believe they actually displayed all this stuff in the window. I just had to go inside.”
“What kind of stuff?” she asked when he paused.
His mouth curved in a slow grin. “Every kind of sex toy you can imagine. Stuff even I hadn’t heard of, and I gotta tell you, I thought I’d heard of everything.” He bit down on the tip of his tongue to concentrate on the delicate nature of his work. “I mean, besides all the dildoes and vibrators and nipple rings and stuff like that. You know what a spreader bar is?”
She shook her head, eyes wide.
“It’s a steel rod about three feet long, with cuffs at each end. You can get them to fit around the ankles or the thighs.” He heard the sharp intake of her breath. “It braces your legs wide open so I can play with your pussy, tease it, watch it suck up a dildo or shimmy from a vibrator. And I can see the whole thing. Every inch of your pussy while I make you come.”
He’d removed enough of her hair now that he could see the trickle of cream his words caused, shining against the pink flesh of her cunt.
“You like that? I thought you would.” He shook the razor in the water then rubbed it against the towel before going back to work on the tiny bits of hair still remaining. “God, it makes me so hard just thinking about it I could pound nails with my dick. So while I was there I bought some.” He grinned. “Had a hell of a time getting that stuff back into the States. Good thing they don’t check our duffel bags when we head home.”
“You have them here?”
“Uh-huh. Not the spreader. Too big to carry. But darlin’, I’ve got a dildo that will stretch that little pussy like… Well, just a minute and I’ll show you.”
He picked up the washcloth he’d carried in with everything else and slowly and gently wiped every area of her now naked cunt. Leaning forward he gently licked the entire surface he’d just shaved so clean. Faith jerked at the touch, then hitched her hips at him.
He lifted his eyes to her without raising his mouth. “See?” he murmured against her skin. “I told you how great this would be. Hold on. I’m going to get out some of those toys.”
He took the bowl and everything else he’d been using into the bathroom, dumped it all in the sink and padded back into the bedroom. Opening the door of the closet, he pulled out the box he’d been saving since he got back from his last mission. He set it on the nightstand and opened it, taking out the large, lifelike dildo with the broad head.
“Think this looks enough like me?” he chuckled.
Faith’s lips parted and her eyes got a heavy-lidded look. “I can’t believe you bought that.”
“Oh, darlin’, this is only the beginning.” Reaching into the box, he took out a small leather sack and pulled from it a small metal vibrator. He held it out for Faith to see. “This is a clit vibrator. The little note that came with it said it will drive you wild. I think we’ll see if that’s true.” Finally he took out a velvet pouch, opened it and two round, smooth balls connected by a thin piece of leather dropped into his hand. “Ben Wa, balls,” he told her. “I heard they drive you out of your mind when you come. Let’s see if they were right.”
Taking the toys, he knelt between her legs, bending them up so her feet were planted flat on the bed and spreading them as wide as he could. He took a moment to grab a pillow and place it beneath her hips, raising her pussy higher and giving him even better access. He bent his head down between her thighs and lapped at her slit with one long slow glide of his tongue. She shivered beneath his touch.
“So wet,” he murmured. “You liked that shaving as much as I did.” His fingers curled into her softness, his stomach contracting at the touch of the wet, quivering flesh. He withdrew his fingers reluctantly, reminding himself the best was yet to come.
“Okay, now. These little guys first.”
Spreading the lips of her cunt with the fingers of one hand, he used the others to insert the Ben Wa balls into her very wet channel, smiling at how easily they slid in. “Let’s see how much pleasure I can give you with this stuff.”
He twisted the tiny vibrator until it hummed in his hand, then leaned forward and began massaging her slit with it. Faith jerked at its touch, and tried to close her legs, but his body kneeling between them kept them spread wide.
“Oh, no. Wide open, sweetheart. That’s what it says.”
He moved the little toy around and around the hot bundle of nerves.
“Can you feel those little balls inside you?” he asked.
“Yes.” Her eyes were glazed with her rising passion. “They…move back and forth… Oh, Mark, it’s like tiny fingers inside me. Ohmigod!”
He bumped up the speed on the vibrator, circling her clit with it then pressing it right on the tip. Faith went wild, tugging desperately on the scarves that bound her hands and thrusting her hips at him with a hard, jerking motion. He knew when her orgasm began. The muscles in her stomach tightened and clenched and delicious moans rolled from her mouth. He spread the lips of her pussy with the fingers of one hand, the sight of those pink muscles convulsing arousing him to the point he had to clench his jaw to maintain some measure of control over himself.
“Please?” she begged. “I want you inside me now. Please?”
He’d planned to slip the dildo inside her spasming pussy but he couldn’t wait any longer to feel her around him. Rolling on a condom, her slipped two fingers inside her to retrieve the Ben Wa balls, lifted her to him and drove into her with one hard, swift stroke.
He let out a slow breath when he was fully inside her, the walls of her cunt clutching at him, her liquid heat bathing his cock. As always he had to grit his teeth to keep from coming immediately.
He bent a head to take first one swollen nipple and then the other into his mouth, swirling his tongue around them, then nipping lightly with his teeth. His balls tightened as desire slashed through him, hot and molten.
He lifted his head to trace the edges of her mouth with his tongue before taking her in a kiss that was hungry and devouring. God, she always tasted so good. Like fresh peaches or fine wine. Her scent and her taste were everywhere inside him. He—
“I cannot help but admire you, Capitan.” Escobedo pushed aside the flap and walked into the tent and immediately the image dissipated. “I don’t know another man who could have held out as long as you have with our, shall we say, inventive treatment.”
Anger fueled him and gave a boost to his waning strength. “Go fuck yourself.”
Escobedo’s mouth turned up in an evil caricature of a smile. “Still full of spirit. I think we haven’t shown you the full extent of our hospitality yet.”
Mark said nothing, just waiting. The man wanted something. What now?
“Imagine our surprise to learn that one of your men actually eluded us.” He shook his head. “Unbelievable. I was sure we’d gotten every one of you. My men will pay for their failure.”
Joey. Still alive? And where?
“I see by the look in your eyes you know exactly who I mean.” He pulled out one of his ever-present cigarillos and lit it. “Apparently your extraction team found him when we could not and brought him home, alive but unconscious.”
Mark watched and waited again. Did Escobedo’s contacts in the States have Joey? Was that it?
“Ah, yes. You’re wondering if we’ve been able to retrieve him. Perhaps he might be more forthcoming about the sources of your information. Unfortunately, just as our people were about to move him to another facility, it seems he was snatched literally from under their noses.”
Phoenix. That’s who it had to be. Damn it, Mark, wipe that name from your brain.
But he hadn’t been quick enough. Escobedo’s eyes narrowed.
“I see in your eyes you know who took him. People who move like ghosts with honed precision. Well, then. We’ll have to have a little discussion about who they could be. We’ll have our little conversation shortly. My…guest…would like to obse
rve and he’s occupied at the moment. Enjoy the respite, Capitan. It won’t last long.”
As he walked past Mark he leaned down and pressed the lighted end of the cigar against Mark’s tortured chest. It was all Mark could do to swallow the scream.
* * * * *
“Aunt Vivi, I’m losing him.”
Faith sat at the little table, finishing her coffee. She’d had a restless night, her dreams filled with images of Mark, flashes from their unforgettable weekend interrupted by scenes of him bloody and beaten. Twice she woke up covered with sweat and choking. When morning arrived she was more tired than when she’d gone to bed and increasingly depressed.
“Sweetheart.” Vivi’s voice across the distance was calming and comforting. “You have to try to separate your empathetic reactions from the telepathic messages. The pain is acting as a roadblock.”
“But—”
“I know that’s easier said than done. Especially because you are so receptive. But if you want to keep the thought connection viable and fight the one who’s trying to interfere, you have to call on that strength I know you have.”
“You’re right. It’s just so hard.”
“Of course it is, my darling. Here’s what you do. When he contacts you, close your eyes and visualize a narrow stream running between high banks. Focus on keeping the water inside those barriers. And I’ll call Sarah and Emily and tell them we need to form a circle of energy. Reach out to us, Faith. Receive our strength.”
“I’ll try, Aunt Vivi. I’ll do exactly what you say.”
“When will you be home?”
“Maybe tonight. Tomorrow for sure.”
“Call me as soon as you get in and I’ll come over.”
Faith let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you so much. For everything.”
Her next call was to Tia.
“What time does your plane get in today?” her assistant demanded.
“I don’t know yet. I may have to change my plans a little. Why?”
“Listen, Faith.” Tia’s voice dropped. “I don’t know what you’re looking for but I’ve dug up a bunch of stuff you need to see.”