Pandora's Box

by K. C. Blake

  “Sure.” He shrugged. “Whatever you need.”

  She hurried to the front door, inserted the key with a twist of her wrist, and quicly crossed the threshold. The stale air of a place that had been closed up for an eternity hit her in the face, the stench of bittersweet ghosts. She wrinkled her nose. She’d have to open up a few windows. But first she needed to make use of her time alone.

  She rifled through her father’s desk, searching his personal papers, looking for clues without the distraction of Tyler hovering in the background. If there was something to find, she wanted to find it first. Then she’d decide whether to share it with her self-appointed ally.

  Grainger had definitely spent time in her father’s cabin. A corner of the wall had been scrawled on with black marker. The handwriting was small and nearly incoherent and Grainger had used abbreviations and code words. She couldn’t make anything out of it.

  Most of the stuff she found in and around her father’s desk didn’t amount to spit. Her gut told her there had to be something more. A heavy rock the size of a fist settled in her stomach. Her eyes went to the partially closed front door. How long would Tyler give her before he figured out what she was doing?

  In the bottom drawer under a pile of insurance papers a plastic bag caught her eye. At first she thought it empty. However, deep in the corner there was a tiny metallic square with a blue speck and what appeared to be miniscule wiring. A microchip? Now why would her father, a top-notch CIA spy leave something like this in a drawer instead of in a safe?

  Unless he had wanted it to be found.

  She quickly took it to a small microscope her father kept on the bookcase near the kitchen. After carefully placing it on the glass, she closed one eye and looked into the microscope with the other. Definitely a microchip.

  Madison grabbed her cell phone. She was pleased to hear the ready signal buzz in her ear. She quickly dialed DeMarco’s private number. Her eyes went to the door and stayed glued to it as she waited for Tyler to interrupt her. He wouldn’t be happy about her calling her ex-lover. Unfortunately she needed DeMarco’s help.

  He answered on the second ring.

  She wondered how much DeMarco knew about Pandora’s Box.

  “Marc, can you find me an address for Rico Boracci?”

  “Boracci?” DeMarco inserted a lengthy pause into the conversation before he spoke again. If he was waiting for her to say something else, he gave up. “What have you gotten yourself into now? And where are you? I know I told you to lay low, but I thought you’d at least be within my reach. I looked everywhere for you.”

  “I’ll explain in a minute. First I need to know you’ll help me. Find his address.” She lifted the tiny microchip on the pad of one finger and eyed it carefully. With her usual connections and resources gone, she didn’t know what to do with the chip. “Also, I need every speech that the president made that was videotaped. I think I might have found something important.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t know. Perhaps the reason my father was killed.”

  DeMarco sighed. “Honey, your father was killed because he tried to assassinate the president. We were both there. We saw it happen.”

  She wasn’t sure what she’d seen anymore. It had happened so fast and the human brain had a way of distorting things, even a trained mind like hers.

  “Please, just find the address for me.”

  Another long pause followed her request and for a moment she actually believed DeMarco would refuse. She bit the inside of her lip, waiting for his response. Would he help her for old time’s sake?

  “Okay, babe. I’ll do it… if you tell me where you are.”

  She hesitated.

  “Is the line secure?”

  “Just checked it yesterday,” he admitted. “It’s clear.”

  A small doubt lingered in Madison’s mind. Should she trust him? She silently argued with herself about divulging her whereabouts. In the end, she decided she owed it to him to tell him. She’d doubted him enough. But she was discreet in her answer. Let him figure it out for himself. If anyone was listening in, they wouldn’t be able to break the code.

  “Where are you?” he asked again. “I checked all our old haunts.”

  “Not all of them. Remember that time you picked a bouquet of wildflowers for me?” She took a long look at her surroundings and allowed the memories to rise up. She and DeMarco had shared a few sweet days at the cabin about two and a half years ago. They’d made love on the rug in front of the fireplace. During that brief time she’d felt safer than she ever had before. “You handed them to me with a huge grin and I didn’t even mind the dirt you brought in with you.”

  “I remember.” She could hear a smile in his voice. “I know exactly where you are. Sit tight. I’ll let you know when it’s safe to return.”

  Madison opened her mouth to inform him that she would return when she felt like it and not a moment sooner, but she didn’t get the chance to utter a single syllable. The front door slowly creaked open. Tyler stood in the doorway, his jaw tight. He’d obviously guessed who she’d been talking to and didn’t like it.

  She froze, lips puckered on her next word.

  She replaced the receiver without saying anything else to DeMarco. Shameful heat suffused her cheeks, openly displaying her guilt. She swallowed the growing lump in her throat and turned away, but she could feel Tyler’s eyes burning a hole in her back. She waited for the questions and accusations to begin. Why did she feel like she’d been caught cheating on her spouse?

  “I’m going to check the kitchen,” she mumbled. “If there’s anything edible, I’ll grab you something too.”

  ******

  Twenty minutes later, Madison ate the last bite of tuna off her fork. She dropped the utensil into the empty tuna can with a loud Clink! and set it aside. Besides tuna, she’d found a bottle of red wine. She smiled to herself, thinking how her father would have a fit if he could see her now. Fish should be served with white wine. But her father was dead. He’d never know.

  Her smile vanished.

  The floor felt less comfortable under her bottom with each passing second, but she didn’t want to move further away from the roaring fire in the stone hearth. She sat Indian-style and leaned forward, taking some of the pressure off her derriere.

  Other than a few cans of food the kitchen had been empty. They would have to travel into Reno in the morning. Maybe they could splurge and eat in a real restaurant.

  Her eyes focused on Tyler’s back as he poked the fire, moving logs around to create the best scenario for flames to grow. His muscles flexed beneath the snug green sweatshirt. Attraction, purely physical, warmed her insides. She could make love with him so easily—but could she trust him?

  Madison fingered the intricate design on the area rug

  “I just realized something,” Tyler said. He settled next to her on the floor. “This is the first time we’ve been alone.”

  Warning bells went off in Madison’s head.

  She cleared her throat before saying, “Not true. We were trapped in a car at the bottom of the sea.”

  “Doesn’t count. We were too worried about our next breath to explore our options.”

  Options? Madison turned away and drained her glass of wine. His eyes burned every spot they touched on her face and body. Unnerved by the sudden attention, she got up and went to the couch. She sat on one end of it, bare feet tucked under her. She pulled a floral pillow onto her lap as a barrier. He couldn’t make a pass if he couldn’t get close enough.

  Madison pulled the rubber band from her hair, freeing it. She rubbed the back of her skull and sighed.

  With a smug smile, Tyler brought the bottle of wine to her and refilled her glass. He topped off his own before setting the bottle back down on the coffee table. He sat on the other end of the couch, giving her the space she so desperately needed, but he watched her with acute male interest.

  “Tell me a secret,” he demanded gently. “Tell me something
about you that would surprise me.”

  “I don’t think so.” She sipped her wine while wishing she was alone in her father’s cabin. She hadn’t had time to fully mourn for him yet. Every time she thought about him being dead… she pushed the fact from her mind and refused to dwell on it because she had to keep her wits about her.

  “I dare you,” Tyler said.

  “No.”

  “I double-dog dare you.”

  “Forget it.” She turned away. “What are you? Twelve?”

  “Come on, Madison. Tell me a secret.” He grinned. “If you show me yours, I’ll show you mine.”

  She would love to know his secrets. She could tell him something she was planning on telling him anyway—eventually. So she blurted out the first thing that came to mind. “I have a microchip in my brain.”

  That wiped the smile off his face.

  He gaped at her, obviously stunned.

  She said, “Grainger told me. It seems I was his first experiment, a guinea pig. Maybe that’s what the four men fought over all those years ago. My father must have tried to stop them.” She looked at Tyler. “And your father probably tried to stop them too, of course. I’m sure President Law would have stepped in. But somehow Grainger and Boracci won out and I have a chip.” She frowned. “I didn’t have a chance to ask him what I’m programmed to do.”

  With a smug smile in place she said, “Top that.”

  “Okay.” He cleared his throat. “I’m not really Tyler Law.”

  Wine went down the wrong way and she began to choke. Tyler moved fast. He thumped her on the back a few times, all the while asking if she was okay, but she couldn’t stop coughing long enough to speak. His awkward laugh revealed his game.

  She knocked his hand away.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. “I was just kidding. I wanted to lighten the mood and it seemed like a very spy thing to say. I guess I watch too many movies. You okay now?”

  She glared at him. “You jackass! I swear if you don’t tell me something big after what I just told you, I’m going to rip your stupid face off.”

  He collapsed onto the sofa with a sigh and threw his hands up in defeat.

  “My parents have an arranged marriage.” He slid her a look, waiting for her reaction. “In case you haven’t noticed, they can’t stand each other. My old man was going to be president come hell or high water. My mother fancied the idea of being the first lady, so they got married. They only consummated the marriage because they needed a child, one child, preferably a boy. Lucky me.”

  Madison felt horrible for the little boy that had to grow up in that situation. No wonder Tyler seemed to have as much trouble trusting people as she did.

  Tyler leaned forward, grabbed the wine bottle, and filled his glass halfway. “Unless you want to stop sharing secrets, it’s your turn again.”

  “You mother isn’t a drunk. She’s been faking it.” Madison studied his reaction to see if this was something he already knew. His eyebrows drew closer. He shook his head slowly and told her she was wrong. If he'd known, he was a damn good actor. She added, “The president handed me her Martini glass yesterday. She’d been weaving around the room, making nasty remarks. I tasted her drink, and it was only water.”

  “That doesn’t make sense,” Tyler said. He looked at her like she’d lost her mind. “Why would she pretend to be a drunk?”

  “Maybe she’s trying to embarrass your father. Or maybe she wants him to give her a divorce.”

  “No. He already agreed to divorce her after he leaves the White House. That’s always been the plan.”

  “You owe me one now. What other secrets do you have, Tyler Law? Anything that would blow my socks off?”

  He hesitated as his eyes moved to her face, filled with sincerity.

  “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

  What the hell did he just say?

  Madison turned away from him and downed the rest of her wine in one long gulp. Her skin tingled. Falling in love with her? She wasn’t sure she liked the sound of that. She’d considered sleeping with him, but anything beyond sex was out of the question. She’d already bungled one important relationship.

  He asked, “How did you get like this?”

  “Excuse me?” She stiffened. A rod of steel went up her spine. She prepared herself for an insult.

  “You’re so strong,” he said. Admiration shone in his dark green eyes and it was directed at her. “You’re so beautiful, so independent…so perfect.”

  Wow! Madison didn’t know how to respond to the unexpected compliment. He obviously meant the words. Nervous, she began to babble. “I’m not that different from anyone else. I’m the product of a broken home. My mother died when I was very young and my father couldn’t deal with a daughter alone, so I did what I could to make things easier on him.”

  “By turning into a tom-boy?”

  “By learning to fulfill my own needs.”

  “It’s nice to be independent for the most part.” He slid across the couch and leaned close until he was mere inches from her face. “But sometimes it’s good to lean on somebody else. You don’t always have to be the strong one.”

  “Yes I do.”

  He really didn’t understand. With a weary sigh she decided to explain it to him. She straightened her spine, steeling it with the truth of her convictions. He’d called her independent, but he didn’t know the half of it. She couldn’t rely on another soul. She controlled her own fate.

  “I don’t need you in my life. You have this Sir Galahad complex where you think you have to protect poor little me. And to think I used to believe you were different from the average chauvinistic male. Now I’m telling you once and for all, I don’t need or want anything from you. I don’t need you or anyone else.”

  “Oh, baby, that is so wrong.” He leaned closer still, and he touched the heavy chain around her throat. He was going to kiss her. Should she let him? The pads of his fingers brushed her skin, burning her with knowledge she didn’t want. He stirred something primal inside of her, something that responded to something in him.

  He asked, “How can you be so fearless when it comes to your body, yet be such a coward when it comes to your heart?”

  “Stop it!” Madison jumped to her feet, breaking the spell. “Okay, we’re physically attracted to each other. There. I said it. That doesn’t mean we have to play it through. If we do decide to hop into bed, it will be because I want to, not because you dare me or manipulate me or confuse me.” Her voice rose, quivering with anger. “And if we do sleep together, I promise you two things right now. First, I’ll rock your world. Second, it will be purely physical. No emotion whatsoever.”

  Tyler gaped at her as if he couldn’t believe his ears, but he didn’t say a word. Instead of arguing the point with her he waved a hand at the door and mumbled, “I’ll get more wood.”

  He got up and left before she could apologize. She’d wanted to call the words back before they left her lips, but it happened so fast. Then it was too late. Tyler left Madison alone and trembling in the cabin, her emotions a churning mess. Why had she said those things to him? She wasn’t sure she even meant them. She realized she wasn’t mad at him but rather at herself for wanting him.

  Madison hunched down in front of the roaring flames and stared into them. They flickered rapidly. The colors caught her attention but the pulse of the fire kept it. She couldn’t look away. She couldn’t think.

  Behind her, she could feel something dark pressing in on her. A monster in disguise. She wanted to look at it, but she couldn’t move. Her eyes widened, unblinking, staring into the fire as it pulsated.

  She tried to scream.

  Nothing.

  ******

  Chapter Ten

  Tyler returned with an armload of wood for the hearth. In his absence the cabin’s interior had darkened considerably. Madison’s parting words echoed in his head. How could he convince her that she could trust him with her heart?

  Madison, hunched
down in front of the fireplace, back ramrod straight, was blocking him from stoking the fire. He dropped the sticks and branches beside her. She didn’t even acknowledge his presence. Ignoring her, he bent over and fed some of the wood to the fire. The flames licked higher.

  The growing fire bathed the cabin in light and Madison’s hair shimmered. It looked like wildfire. His fingers itched to stroke that hair back from her pretty face. He’d meant what he said earlier. She was an amazing woman, and he wanted to know her better. Perhaps when this whole ordeal was over they could take their relationship to the next level.

  He went to her father’s desk and searched it even though he knew she’d already done it. She could have missed something or more likely, hid something from him. Either way he’d feel better after going through it himself and since she insisted on giving him the silent treatment, he had nothing better to do.

  He found a folder beneath a ton of receipts. Inside were newspaper clippings about a woman committing suicide. Tyler quickly scanned the articles with growing understanding and compassion for what Madison had suffered.

  The woman who had killed herself had been Madison’s mother, Sharon Grey.

  Tyler tossed the folder to the center of the desk. He turned to Madison, surprised to see she hadn’t moved an inch. If she’d seen the folder, she could be in shock. Maybe she’d thought her mother had died of natural causes or in some sort of accident.

  Tyler went to her and stood next to her. Not a muscle in her body moved. She could have been a mannequin in a store front window.

  “Madison?” He placed a hand on her stiff shoulder. Despite the fire, his blood turned to ice. Beneath his fingers, her shoulder felt like rigor mortis had set in. He shook her fiercely. “Madison!”

  She leaped up and backwards simultaneously like a startled cat. Her hands came up, ready to defend herself, and her legs spread apart in the familiar fighting stance. She stared at him as if she didn’t recognize him. Her dark eyes shone like chips of ebony, catching and displaying the firelight, flames of hell ready to take another victim.