“What’s the matter with her? Kayla?” Mace said.
Was that Mace? She tried to open her mouth, but no sound came out. Her heart thumped in her throat and in her ears.
Someone was touching her. “Kayla, come on, sweetheart, stay with me.”
“What’s going on?” Mace demanded.
“Kayla, squeeze my hand. Look at me.”
Everything around her darkened. Night time? The scream broke free from her panic. She tried to block his fist, but it connected with her rib. The crack snatched her breath, and pain shot through her limbs. The coppery taste of blood ran in her mouth. Choking her, his fingers dug into her throat. She grabbed his wrists. “Stop…help me—somebody—please…help me.”
All alone. Fight…fight or die.
Fight.
* * * *
“Where’s Caleb?” Cobbs yelled sharply.
“In the garage, I’ll get him.” Nathan bolted between the police officers circling them. “Caleb, Stitch, we need you man—now.”
“Move the table,” Thane ordered. He swung Kayla into his arms and sat on the floor, stretching her along the length of his body. Sweat drenched her skin already, and she gasped as if she couldn’t get any air. Experiencing enough hand-to-hand combat, he recognized her movements. Writhing then stiffening, her arms jerked trying to block the blows from invisible fists.
“Is this epilepsy? What the hell is this?” Mace said, dropping to his knees beside him.
“No.” Christ, she was strong for being so little. Capturing her arms within his, he wrapped them around her body to stop her from flailing. “Baby, you don’t have to fight. I’m here.”
“Greg!” she screamed.
An arrow of jealousy shot through him. Brother or not, Lapierre should have killed this fucking guy when he had the chance. What her ex-husband had done deserved a death sentence. This type of trauma didn’t come from a single attack. Her ex had done it over and over again, and she’d taken it, healing herself and losing herself with each beating.
Caleb came to a sliding stop on his knees beside them, checking her pulse. “Commander, how many of these has she had?”
Hearing Caleb, Kayla started to thrash. “Four that I’ve seen, this is the worst.” Her elbow slipped from his grip and nailed him with an upper cut to his jaw.
“Talk to her, Commander, tell her she’s safe. Remind her where she is.” Caleb laid his hand on her stomach. “Come on, Kayla, big, deep breaths.” Caleb swung around. “Lieutenant—” Kayla’s knee thrust a deep jab into Caleb’s ribs, but he ignored it. “Lieutenant, hold her legs, not too much pressure.”
When Cobbs grabbed her ankles, Kayla let out an agonized scream that made the entire team jump. “Breathe, Kayla, I’m right here, baby. I’m holding you. It’s just a dream, a bad dream.” Kayla’s head lashed back, giving him a healthy head butt.
The team watched silently as she fought off her invisible attacker. The final battle that almost took her life played out before them. The dark shadows of her mind assailed her, not allowing her to escape. Tony and Nathan turned away stiffly, their expressions morphing with sadness. Her body jolted, responding to a painful strike and then she tried desperately to get away from him. The violent assault gripped her body, trapped in her mind with the lethal force. She begged for her life, then screamed as another invisible fist struck her, and her body lurched. Fingernails cut into his skin with desperation, but he wouldn’t let her go. Kayla shrieked, thrusting forward as if taking a powerful blow to her stomach.
Mace grabbed her hand. “Caleb, Jesus, stop this,” he pleaded.
Caleb took her other hand and restrained it. “Tinman, get a wet cloth.” Turning, Caleb stared intently at him then Mace. “It’s as real to her as if she were there. Commander, what brought her out of it before?”
“Nothing, I just talked to her, but it wasn’t like this.” Kayla tried to twist out of his arms, but he used as much force as it took to hold her steady, but not hurt her. He remembered the cop the first time she’d got lost in the darkness. “The cop,” he said out loud. “His radio. She finally focused when she heard it squawk.”
Mace shot a look at the cops still gaping at the scene in front of them. “Turn your radios up. Snow White, Snow White, this is SEAL One Alpha, can you hear me?”
Kayla’s legs stiffened.
Mace shot a look at him. He nodded quickly. They had nothing else and she wasn’t coming out of it this time.
“Snow White, this is SEAL One Alpha, recon data, ready to copy?”
Kayla’s breathing hitched, and her whole body bucked in his arms.
“Snow White, do you copy?” Mace called loudly.
Her lips moved, but no sound came out.
Although he wanted to do anything but, it was time for him to command. “Answer the call, Ms. Banks,” he ordered in her ear. Kayla stiffened like a board. They all held their breath watching her. “Answer the call, damn it.” Tears blurred his vision.
For the first time in minutes, she took a deep breath. Tony knelt beside Caleb, handing him the wet face towel, and he rubbed the sweat from her arms and forehead. Thane loosened his grip, and her arm slid to her side, her wrist bent at an awkward angle on the floor.
Mace kept talking to her, trying to pull her out of the darkness. “Snow White, this is One Alpha, extraction eighteen-forty-five hours, all Frogs in the water. Confirm rendezvous?”
Kayla’s body relaxed, her head drooped and rested against his chest. He could feel her heartbeat slowing down. “That’s it, baby,” he whispered.
“Commander?” Fox knelt on one knee beside Mace, shaking his head, his eyes bright with unshed tears. “Too much damage.” His expression twisted with pain and he bowed his head.
A lump formed in the back of his throat. “No, I don’t believe that.” He kept his arms around her delicate body, protecting her against the meaning of Fox’s words.
“I’ve seen this a lot, Commander.” Caleb rested a hand on his shoulder. “I know you have, too.” His brow wrinkled deep with concern. “She’s at a critical stage. If she doesn’t get help soon—”
“I know. God, I know.” He buried his face in her hair, and wept for her. His beautiful Kayla, her mind and her body tormented all her life was reaching the end of its endurance. If he didn’t find the Shark, if he didn’t end this, he was going to lose her. Each episode had been worse than the last. She needed help, and luckily, she was in the best place to get it. The base hospital had professionals who dealt with psychological trauma. “We’re not going to wait any longer. We’re going to find the Shark and finish this,” he said to his team. They all watched as her hand reached for his trident and brushed it with her finger.
“Thane,” Cobbs said quietly, his eyes swerving from her hand to his gaze. “Why did you keep this from us?”
He laid his cheek against her soft curls, and shook his head. What could he say? He’d spend eternity with this woman, no matter what the suffering would mean. No matter what the team meant to him, he’d protect Kayla first and always. He pinned a hard look on Cobbs. “She’s going to be all right.”
Cobbs’ expression tightened with sympathy. “Old man, she’s not whole anymore. She’s splintering. Fox is right. It might be too late. You have to be prepared for that.”
His friend had always been the voice of reason, but he refused to believe it. “Broken or not, she’s mine, Pat. I won’t leave her behind.” The words came out hushed, but his tears came like a rogue wave. “She’s mine. Forever mine.”
Kayla’s lashes fluttered, and slowly as if waking from a deep sleep she lifted her head and looked around her.
“Hey, Kayla-girl,” Fox said, touching her shoulder lightly. “All your favorite guys are right here. Come on back to us.”
Her head rolled and she stared up at him trying to focus, embarrassment and questions filling her eyes at the same time. “I’m so sorry.” Her hand swept a tear from his cheek. “Please don’t cry for me, Commander,” she whispered and c
losed her eyes again. “Raven—can’t catch me.”
Sorrow gutted him and bit him so hard a groan of anguish left his throat. Standing in the desert, she’d looked so beautiful, wild and delicate. She’d taken his breath, like the Arizona wind that swept around them that day. My grandmother said although a raven has sharp eyes and quick claws, it can’t catch what’s already dead. His forehead dipped to hers. “No, baby, you’re not dead. Please.” He choked on a sob. “Kayla, please—just take my hand, I’ll bring you home. I’ll always bring you home.”
He connected with each of his men. Each one looked away from him as he held his broken dove in his arms. The unspoken words in each of their eyes telling him she was too far gone, her past never allowing her to be a whole again. “SEALs never fucking give up. I will never give up on her.”
With a lazy sway she shook her head. “Commander?”
All he could do is nod, his words twisted up in battle, his agony against his heart.
“Promise me you’ll take this back before they bury me,” she said squeezing his trident.
“Never,” gusted from him. “You are the only woman who will ever wear that. The only woman strong enough to.” He swiped at his eyes, and dug deep to still his fear.
Mace drew her hand to his heart. She blinked, still trying to grasp her surroundings, then draped an arm across his shoulder. “Mace—”
“Don’t you ever scare me like that again.” Mace pulled her into his lap.
She offered him a tired smile, and rested her head against his. “Death has stood at my door too many times, Mace. This time I think I have to go with him.”
“You’re talking to the wrong group of guys, Kayla, if you want to talk about playing chess with the reaper.” He brushed her bangs from her forehead. “You might feel like you’re lost in the darkness, but the Commander knows the way out.” Mace kissed her cheek and shot a worried look in his direction. “Repeat after me—the only easy day was yesterday.”
Kayla offered a crooked, tired grin. “Now, there’s a morbid thought.”
Thane’s heart lightened with her smartass remark. An eternal brilliance burned in the woman he loved, lighting her path. The rough waters of her past would never keep her down. She was a warrior, just like him. He leaned toward her and her eyes darted nervously around at the guys. “My sweet mermaid, follow me.” He kissed her deeply, tasting her, needing her.
Her cheeks flushed. “Commander?”
“Don’t worry, Kayla, apparently I was the last to figure it out.”
“Figure what out?”
He gave her a gentle kiss and said, “Guess I’m not the last.” Kayla’s brows disappeared beneath her bangs. “Sweetheart, I won’t be far away.”
She nodded and her lids slid closed with exhaustion. “Where’re you going?”
“Fishing, sweetheart, and I’m going to bring home one very dead Shark.”
*THE END*
About the Author
Natasza Waters is an officer, author, and reviewer with InD’Tale Magazine. She debuted her first romance novel, “Too Grand For Words” in 2011. Issued in E-pub and paperback through BookStrand Publishing, the novel found its way to book clubs where women enjoy a cup of romance with a twist of steam.
After majoring in English in her early years, Natasza’s life altered course. A lifelong working relationship with the marine industry began when she became an officer with the Coast Guard. Crafting stories with pieces snipped from real life and the sea—particularly the West Coast and those who respect it as much as they love it, find their way into plots puddled in action and suspense, with unsung heroes and heroines aplenty.
A twenty-four hour day finds Natasza drafting her next novel, blogging, working, and reviewing other author’s voices. Sleep you say? Not so much! Visit her websites at http://nataszawaters.com/ or http://voicebetweenthelines.com/ or drop a review or a word at http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6086142.Natasza_Waters
Secret Cravings Publishing
www.secretcravingspublishing.com
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