Sunroper (Goddesses Rising)

by Natalie J. Damschroder

  He appeared almost immediately. Marley suspected he’d followed her after she’d cleared the other two rooms but didn’t say anything since he’d stayed out of the way.

  “I thought you said you took his computer. Were these all here before?” She indicated the papers on the table.

  “No, it was cleaned off. I’ve never seen that laptop. Maybe he got a new one.” He moved to examine the papers. Marley found the main switch for the kitchen lights and flipped them on. No dishes in the sink, but the dishwasher, less than half full, had been run. She tried to reconcile that with her earlier thoughts about housekeeping. The dishes were haphazardly placed, so maybe Aiden was somewhat conscientious and hadn’t wanted it to smell. Which meant he probably wasn’t planning on coming back for a little while.

  “How often does housekeeping come in?” she asked.

  “Hmm? About once a week.” He added the page he’d been perusing to a pile in his left hand and picked up another from the table. “Every two weeks if he’s not here. Why?”

  “Putting together pieces of the puzzle.” There were no magnets on the refrigerator door, never mind convenient slips of paper with the date and time of a meeting with the sun goddess. “Is there anywhere else he’d stay if he was going to be in town?”

  “No.” Gage stacked the pages and tapped them on the table to align them before he set them down and pulled the laptop over. “But he sometimes crashes at Christopher’s, if they’re on a gaming marathon or something.”

  Marley opened a few drawers but found nothing but bare essentials. “So what’s the paperwork for?”

  “A lot of it is just investment reports from his trust and stuff, but some of it looks like he’s planning on starting a business.”

  “What kind of business?”

  He shrugged and jiggled the wireless mouse while the boot screens flashed and blinked. “Doesn’t say. It’s all general, preliminary stuff.”

  Marley would take his word for it. Her father had done most of the work setting up her inn’s finances, and while he’d often lectured her on wise investing and taking care of her money, she’d cared more about the people side of things.

  Gage, on the other hand, had managed to balance both. At least according to the reading she’d done on him. He looked every inch the businessman right now, his eyes focused intently on the material he scanned on the laptop, his fingers quick on the keyboard. Marley could easily picture him in the boardroom or on a golf course, schmoozing clients and investors—with or without influence.

  A clock in the other room chimed. She pushed away from the counter she’d been leaning on and winced when the movement pulled at her stitches. The rest of the apartment, spare as it seemed, could still hold clues.

  It was a short search, partly because she didn’t know what she was looking for and partly because there wasn’t much to sort through. If Aiden spent much time here—and she suspected he didn’t—he was usually in the game room playing games. He had a massive collection for his four gaming systems.

  The bathroom and Aiden’s bedroom were clean and neat, with more clothes and toiletries than Marley had owned in her entire life, but nothing was out of the ordinary. Under the beds—in Aiden’s room and the guest room—was just empty carpet. If he had a hidey-hole anywhere, she couldn’t find it. Nothing was stashed inside the ventilation grates, either, at least not within flashlight range. No safes tucked behind pictures on the walls or envelopes taped under drawers or any ingenious place she could come up with.

  She checked in with Anson and headed back to the kitchen. Gage looked up as she entered, his gaze locking on hers for an unguarded second. The silvery-blue flashed with pleasure, and Marley shivered.

  To cover her reaction, she walked over and stood behind him to view the laptop screen. “Find something?”

  He slumped a little and shook his head. “Nothing. He must have bought this after I took his old one. There’s barely anything on it. Just more of this stuff”—he flipped some of the papers—“too unspecific to help.”

  “Okay. Let’s check out Christopher’s then.”

  A few moments later, Marley tapped her comm on the way out of Aiden’s apartment and updated Anson. She swung left and checked the fancy gold numbers on the doors. She heard the slide-snap of the deadlock behind her, and Gage caught up a few seconds later.

  “What are we going to do at Christopher’s?” he asked in a low voice.

  “Good question,” Anson added.

  “I’ll decide after we get there and determine if anyone’s home.”

  She slowed when they approached the corner to the hallway where Christopher’s apartment was. She knew it was to the right and across the hall, but she wasn’t sure how far down his entry door was. The plush carpeting and thick walls would absorb sound, so she couldn’t tell if anyone was coming from that direction.

  Alcoves set into the walls held fresh flowers, statues, or framed art at intervals, and this hallway didn’t end in a bland corner but rather with a larger nook that extended past the juncture. A large marble sculpture of a naked man dominated the space. Marley shifted to stand with her back against the wall of the intersection. She motioned Gage to stay back and slowly leaned toward the corner until she could peer around it.

  Christopher’s door was about five feet down. She detected half-a-dozen Numina behind it, and at least one of those signatures contained the blue shine that came from flux.

  She grinned, eager for action. All she had to do was wait until they left and follow them. One touch, and they’d be nullified. But no, that was shortsighted. Nullifying the flux wasn’t her only goal anymore. She had to stay hidden, to let things play out until they knew how to stop Lahr. But at least they knew someone was here, and Christopher had been with the goddess last night, so hopefully she was still nearby.

  She might even be in the apartment. Every inch of Marley jonesed to bust through the door and find out. She was halfway through envisioning it, her muscles bunching for action, when common sense took over again. This was a building for rich people, or at least people who wanted to live like they were rich. That door wouldn’t bust easily, even with Marley’s enhanced strength. If she did get through it and Lahr was on the other side, what was she going to do? Battle her? With the power the goddess had at her disposal, Marley wouldn’t stand a chance.

  Gage’s hand closed slowly around her wrist. “What are you planning?” His whisper wasn’t audible in the hall but filtered into her ear through the comm.

  “Marley, what’s going on?” Anson asked immediately.

  “Nothing,” she murmured, holding herself still. Gage must have detected her gathering tension. She had to give him credit for his awareness but wished he’d trusted her more. Then she wouldn’t have to endure his warm, masculine hand that held strength and gentleness in equal parts. She wouldn’t notice that his skin was spa-soft but with calluses that scraped just enough across her skin to induce shivers.

  “Where are you?” Anson demanded.

  Marley kept her whisper as quiet as Gage’s had been. “Outside Christopher’s apartment. They’re in there. Six people. Five regular Numina, and I think only one fluxed.”

  “Okay, come back. We’ll strategize.”

  Too late. The signatures had moved closer. They were about to come out into the hall.

  Marley wrapped her hand around Gage’s forearm and yanked him after her, across the intersection and into the alcove. They squeezed behind the marble statue just in time. A door opened, accompanied by a jumble of voices.

  Since the marble was white and Marley was dressed in dark jeans and a black shirt, she wouldn’t be well hidden if anyone looked. Gage positioned himself in front of her, clearly thinking the same thing. His shoulders barely stretched wider than the statue’s, so at first glance maybe they wouldn’t be seen. He laid his hands on her hips, as if to hold her in position, but turned his head to listen and seemed barely aware of her presence.

  Amused, she stood motionless and liste
ned. Two of the Deimons said good-bye, and their voices faded down the hall in the opposite direction, toward the elevator. Besides the guy with flux, Marley could detect three distinct Numina signatures now. She drew in a breath. Three distinct signatures. Not just separate but unique. She couldn’t do that before. It had to be due to the wave of energy she’d absorbed in the woods, or maybe nullifying those two fresh fluxheads. That energy had been stronger than what she’d taken before, so maybe it had a more powerful effect on her.

  Elated, she wished for another way to check how far her ability stretched. Then she realized she had another Numina right in front of her. Sure enough, when she compared her awareness of him to her awareness of the other guys, his hum vibrated differently. As unique as his voice and scent.

  She shifted her weight and blinked hard to disconnect. That was way too much intimacy, no matter how unaware he was.

  “I’ll see you at nine tonight,” one of the Numina said.

  Christopher, Gage mouthed, and Marley nodded, fixing his hum in her mind.

  “Hang on.” The fluxhead. He kept his voice low, but Marley had no trouble hearing him. “I heard she was up at the barn. She took Barry and Damian’s flux before—” He was shushed in stereo and dropped his voice even further. Judging by Gage’s frustrated look, he was having trouble hearing now. Marley had to work harder but could still catch every word.

  “Before they even got to the parking lot. I don’t know if I want to risk this. Maybe we should all lay low for a little while, until we know the threat’s been neutralized.”

  Christopher spoke again. “We can’t reschedule. Cressida is only in town tonight. If you want the next level, you have to come to the ceremony.”

  “But I could go to LA,” the other guy suggested. “We could just do it there.”

  Another guy’s voice held amused disdain as he answered. “You can’t get the next level in LA. This set gets done here. LA is for the stars.”

  “Like Pettle.” He named the football player with bitter envy, then let out a squeaky kind of noise that had Gage’s eyebrows rising and Marley wondering if one of the other guys had poked the kid—or worse.

  “Do things the right way,” Christopher said, “and you’ll get to LA. Eventually.”

  The kid sighed. “All right. I’ll be here at nine. What do I need to bring again?”

  There was a collective sigh. The Numina farthest back in the entryway grumbled something Marley didn’t catch, and then Christopher spoke again. “The tribute you committed to at the barn. A demonstration or description of how you’ve used the gift so far. A presentation of your goals.”

  “Right, right. Got it. See you then!”

  More grumbling, then the door closed. The kid’s voice trailed off down the hall. He sounded like he was reciting Christopher’s list.

  Marley stared up at Gage. She needed to get ears inside that apartment. They had just over eight hours until the meeting, and Cressida would be gone after that. To LA. Not that California put her out of reach. But it would be far easier to take her down tonight, or barring that, collect information that might give them some clue how to take her down.

  Gage’s fingers tightened on Marley’s hips, snapping her into the present. She stood inches away from him, her head tilted back in unintentional invitation. Gage watched her as if her thoughts had passed like a video across her face. Hell, maybe they had. She hadn’t been trying to hide anything in those few seconds. But now with her focus off the conversation ten feet away and back in this cozy little alcove, she felt the heat of him all the way down her body, not just where he touched her. His scent had filled her while she wasn’t paying attention, enticing her until she wanted to bury her face in his neck and drink deep. See if he tasted as good as he smelled.

  Her eyelids flicked down, and her gaze landed on his mouth. It curved to a centimeter shy of smug. Marley let her lips part to see what he would do. His smile covered that centimeter and more, but when he tilted forward and leaned down, she didn’t move.

  Her brain yelled, Hey! Moron! What the hell are you doing? but she didn’t step back or push him away. His mouth lowered slowly, his lashes drifting over his cheekbones so she couldn’t see those gorgeous, silver-swirled eyes. Then she closed her own, and his open mouth brushed hers. Hovered, not waiting for permission or rejection, but…savoring her. With a sigh he closed the gap and pressed against her lips.

  Tingles sent Marley into a shiver as Gage pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her back, careful to avoid her wound. One hand cupped the back of her head as he deepened the kiss a little at a time.

  And fuck it all—she should have listened to her brain. Because all the senses she’d ignored for almost five years lit up like the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Plaza, soaking in sensory input like a sponge. No, forget sponge—she was a freaking black hole of sensation, from the skin burning under the hand that had somehow made it up under her shirt to the electric, hungry clinging of their mouths. Marley opened hers to let him in deeper. God, he tasted good.

  Desire pounded a multibeat rhythm in half-a-dozen parts of her body. His tongue dipped inside, slow and seductive, and she sucked it. Gage moaned and shifted, twisting to bend her back over his arm.

  “What’s going on?” came Anson over the apparently still-on comm. Marley had gotten so used to the faint hiss she’d stopped hearing it.

  Gage levered her upright, and she stepped back so his hands dropped away from her.

  “Nothing,” she reported, annoyed that her voice came out a shade husky. “We’ll be right up.” She tapped off her comm and waited for Gage to do the same. He did, without taking his eyes off her. Her heart rate slowed and her breathing grew less labored. Nothing happened except Gage standing, waiting. His hands flexed, and Marley wanted to step back into his arms.

  Instead, she bolted, squeezing past the sculpted Greek warrior or whatever he was, and with a quick check to be sure the hall was clear, she hurried toward the stairwell. Gage was beside her in two strides.

  She couldn’t do this. Her judgment was so beyond questionable when it came to romance, she couldn’t be openly trusting of anyone, never mind someone from the other side. However aligned their goals might be, he was Numina, and so were the enemies of the Society. His father was in charge of making sure no one damaged Numina’s foundation, and his loyalties would lie with his own men, even if he didn’t condone what they’d done. How could she trust that Gage wouldn’t make choices against her, against the people she loved?

  Getting involved with the wrong guy was a mistake she was not going to repeat.

  “We need to get access to that apartment,” she said once they were out of earshot. “I want to know more details about this ceremony at nine o’clock.”

  “I have some ideas about that.” Gage pulled open the stairwell door and stood back to let her go ahead of him. He removed the piece of paper they’d stuffed in the latch to keep it from locking, and they headed up the stairs.

  “I’m not sure if we have the kind of equipment we’d need to listen remotely,” she said, thinking aloud. “Anson will know if we do or if he can get it.”

  Gage came even with her, easily maintaining the pace she’d set. “It’s New York City. Of course we can get it.”

  “Fast, with no one knowing about it?” she asked skeptically. When Gage just looked at her like she’d undergone a memory wipe, she sighed. “Okay, I guess with money like yours, you can do anything.”

  “It’s not just that.” They rounded a landing and continued up. “I probably have some of it, at least, at the office.”

  “Okay.” Gage had pulled ahead of her since he had the inside corner on the turns. She pushed herself a little faster, ignoring the renewed pull in her right side but gratified that her breathing remained normal. She checked the floor number on the next landing. Six to go.

  “Where’s your office, anyway? It’s not in this building.”

  “No, I wanted my own space. It’s across town.” After
another half a flight his voice had gone slightly breathless. “What do you think about the ceremony itself?”

  Marley smiled a little. “Not much until I learn more, but I’d like to get inside that apartment and watch the ceremony in person. We need to know their weaknesses to generate ideas.”

  “You don’t have any yet?”

  She had one, but it was the stupidest idea anyone had ever had. If someone could infiltrate the Deimons and get enough flux, they could leech Cressida. But the risks were far too high, so Marley didn’t even want to mention it unless they had no choice. To find other options, they needed more information. Which meant she had to get into that apartment.

  Gage unlocked his door but this time didn’t move aside when he motioned her in. She could have angled sideways to avoid touching him, but then they’d be face-to-face again, and she’d had enough of that for today. So she strode past, letting her shoulder drag across his chest, eyes forward, chin lifted.

  Gage laughed. Marley didn’t, but the sound did inspire a lightness she hadn’t felt in years.

  …

  It didn’t take long to take action on Marley’s initial plan. Anson’s endless stash of gadgetry produced wireless microphones, and Gage knew enough about the building to interpret the blueprints into reality and trace a path through access corridors and ductwork. Marley’s ability to control her body to a minute degree allowed her to maneuver silently through both. She planted a voice-activated mic over the heads of the Deimons without anyone knowing.

  Once the mic was planted and they’d established that it was working, they took one-hour shifts with the headset while alternately napping and discussing possible plans for the nine-o’clock ceremony. Unfortunately, four hours of listening yielded nothing but boring trash talk while Christopher, Tony, and Brad played something Gage called a first-person shooter on Xbox. During Marley’s shift, it had been a struggle not to let her mind wander from the gunfire and explosions and digital yells, the repetitive eat mes and take that, douchebags. There had been a couple of mentions of Aiden, but only vague stuff that gave them no hint of where he was or what he might be doing.