Jack of Hart- Wild Card

by Violeta Bagia

  With a slow and determined move, he picked me up and I wrapped my legs around his body, he walked us over the bedroom and laid us down in the bed. As a hot kiss landed on my pulse, he propped himself up on his elbow, his eyes searched mine, looking right through me.

  ‘Don’t hold back.’ His voice was dark and low, an almost inaudible whisper of a desperate plea.

  ‘It’s not safe…’

  ‘Let go.’ He encouraged, ‘I know it hurts you more to hold it at bay. It’s okay.’

  He coaxed my face toward his, forcing my eyes back up to his, they were full of conviction and determination in what he was asking me to do.

  ‘I trust you Ace.’ Another kiss landed on my neck.

  His hands slipped between us stopping on my thigh sweeping up higher and higher though he took his time letting each stroke against my skin leave a fire in it its wake.

  I bit down on my lip and brought my eyes to him.

  ‘I trust you.’ He said again. ‘Let go, it’s okay.’

  No matter how much I let my walls down with him, there was a small part of me I couldn’t control. That was the part that flared in response to his presence and pulsed with unknown energy in his proximity. It was the Connection that I was afraid of. When I was emotionally out of control, it controlled me, and I had no idea what could happen.

  As his hand travelled higher a breath caught on my lips—I knew what he was trying to do and at this point, I would have done anything he’d asked.

  ‘Don’t be scared.’ His hand slowly moved, teasing and controlling every breath that left my lips. ‘You can control it, you know you can, you just have to trust yourself.’

  Opening my mouth to protest, he stopped me with a kiss and let his hands wander as they worked their magic. A fragmented breath was lost as he took over completely.

  My body moved in anticipation arching to feel him, willing him to ease the agonizing ache that was building with every passing touch. And when I opened my eyes and found his, I let go and, in that moment, he eased our bodies together and let his walls crash down and flood into me.

  I allowed everything to be free, the static around us pulsed without limitation, the light in the room steadily thrummed in beat to our hearts and as he pushed us both closer to the edge the air in the room shifted and a figure rushed past us in my peripheral.

  My eyes snapped open, and I pushed Illarion back, panting, on the verge of completely breaking down.

  ‘It’s okay Ace, I won’t touch you, what’s going on?’ He moved away from me; hands outstretched.

  My eyes darted around, ‘Oh God, there, there was something, I, I saw something.’

  He looked around, confusion sweeping over his features. ‘Ace, there’s no one here. You’re okay.’

  Tears rapidly filled my eyes and I broke down. Illarion moved quickly, his arms pulling me against him.

  ‘It’s just us, Ace, just us. Stay with me.’

  My body shook as he held onto me and the image of the shadow, I couldn’t shake it… it was him, it had to be. Oh God.

  ‘Shh.’ He whispered, pulling me back down under the sheets until my body stopped shaking. ‘I’ve got you, you’re okay.’

  I didn’t know if he saw it, but I knew he saw the terror in my eyes, as my tears subsided and my heart swelled with each caress, I tightened my hold on Illarion and buried my face in his chest.

  As he pulled me closer, I swept my hand over his cheek.

  ‘Are you okay?’ He asked.

  Refusing to open my eyes, I nodded.

  ‘Don’t hide from me, please.’ He said. ‘You worried me.’

  Once again, he eased my face up to his and slowly, tentatively I opened my eyes.

  His lips parted, letting out a ghost of a breath.

  ‘I’m sorry.’ I whispered. ‘I ruined this.’

  ‘You didn’t ruin anything.’ He pressed a kiss on my forehead and tightened his hold on me. ‘We should leave as soon as possible. You’re starting to get more unsettled.’

  ‘He’s finding weak spots in my defenses.’

  ‘Is there anything I can do?’

  ‘No.’ I shook my head.

  I wrapped my arms around him and nuzzled my face against his hard chest. ‘Should we tell Josh?’

  ‘I don’t think we should tell anyone.’

  ‘Do you know something I don’t?’

  ‘Nothing concrete, I’m not risking it.’

  ‘What are you worried about?’

  His eyes closed momentarily before he drew in a sharp breath and then found my eyes again, he drew me closer, pressing his hand to the nape of my neck drawing his fingers through my hair.

  ‘Elena and the board were considering treatment.’

  My heart stuttered. ‘You said they were just talking.’

  ‘They were, now they’re not.’

  ‘Based on what?’

  ‘Aurel’s word.’

  ‘Damn it.’ I grit my teeth. ‘He spoke to her.’

  ‘He put forth a compelling case, so I’m told.’

  ‘Now what?’

  ‘I’ve contacted Alex. He knows what’s happening on this end, the best we can do now is have him on speed dial.’

  ‘And the others?’

  ‘Price and Peyton are on board; we just have to call for an extraction.’

  ‘And where exactly would that be?’

  ‘South of the border, once we’re free.’

  Who the hell would have thought that the biggest pain in my ass would turn out to be one of the only, and very few allies I’d have left?

  ‘I’m going to try and talk them down, in the meantime you go to the mall, get us new clothes, phones, the lot.’

  ‘We’re really doing this.’

  ‘He’s left us no option. I don’t know what the time frame they’ve given is, he’s trying to backpedal, because I think even in his idiotic mind he knows this is extreme.’

  ‘What about the plan to find the antidote?’

  ‘At least we can count on the Agency to actually stick to it, it’s in their best interest to.’

  ‘Unless we’re being played.’

  ‘Maybe, but for now, trusting that they’ll take care of that is the only option we have. We have to get out of here and keep running our own counter mission.’

  ‘Where are we going to go?’

  ‘I’ll make some calls and figure it out. Try to get some rest.’

  Chapter Thirty

  Ace

  The next morning when I woke, Illarion was already gone. He’d left a note next to some freshly squeezed juice telling me that he was going to speak with Aurel and hopefully catch Elena before she took the jet to LA. She was meeting with another state senator to do some damage control; this one however was a non-Sensitive and he was known to lobby against us. I had some unease about the situation, but it wasn’t my place to tell her what to do.

  If Illarion, as the Director didn’t have anything to add, then my opinion would most definitely be ignored.

  Next to the note he’d left a plain, unmarked envelope. When I opened it up, I was surprised to see close to two thousand dollars in fifty-dollar bills and another note.

  “We’re on our own after tonight. Only use cash and stay off the radar. Yours always, IL.”

  I took the envelope and stashed it my wallet. After showering, I got dressed in black jeans, a grey hoodie and tossed a leather jacket over it, anything to blend in with the normal people. I added a baseball cap for good measure and took my bag and locked up.

  A little outside the complex of safehouses, I spotted a Walmart. Bingo. I readjusted my hat, making sure my blonde locks framed my face and doubled as a barrier between me and the security cameras.

  Making a line for the beauty section, I browsed the hair dye and seriously contemplated something funky, pink, maybe blue, but that would kind of go against the whole point—we were meant to blend in, disappear.

  ‘I think you should go red.’

  I turned to my left,
a woman about my age stood with her arms crossed, eying me up and down.

  She was striking, bold red lips, fiery red hair and a killer black trench to seal the deal.

  ‘Red would suit your eyes.’ She added, stepping closer, her perfume of wild cherries and vanilla was intoxicating. ‘See.’

  She held up a box with a green eyed, tan skinned model with red hair. Not the rebellious teenager gone red kind, but the sexy Jessica Chastain kind.

  ‘Really?’ I asked, looking back at her.

  She was tall, slender, perfect winged eye, I was in awe. Yep. Very obviously crushing on this perfect stranger.

  She smiled.

  ‘Definitely.’ She handed me the box. ‘Your eyes are stunning, your skin tone is gorgeous and if you must change your hair, I’d say, go bold. Make your man sweat.’

  I broke out into a laugh, the engagement ring suddenly felt like it weighed a ton and I imagined how surprised Illarion would be.

  ‘Okay.’ I chuckled. ‘Red it is. Thank you.’

  ‘No worries, babe, you’ll kill it.’ She winked and left.

  My own personal, guardian angel. Huh. That was odd but nice. I dropped the box in the shopping basket and continued to the next aisle. I grabbed some food, basic first aid supplies and when I rounded the corner, I grabbed a phone and two sim cards.

  Further in I disappeared into the endless racks of tacky clothes and picked out some plain shirts for Illarion, some sweat pants and caps, and finally yoga pants, gym shorts and shirts for myself.

  That would do.

  Paying for everything in cash took longer than card which was a pain in the butt. But I was done, finally. I broke free of the Walmart hell and began my journey to the complex.

  I checked my watch, crap, Illarion should have been back by now.

  The second I opened the door; I was surprised to see it empty. Huh. Illarion was still out. At least it’d give me a chance to pack. I emptied the contents of all the bags onto the bed and sorted everything into his pile and mine, once that was done, I found some duffle bags stashed in the closet and used both to pack our things into.

  Packing took a few hours, sorting the rest of things a little longer and when I was finally done, I looked at the clock. It was late, Illarion was still a no show and a quick check on our Connection confirmed that he was okay, which helped me ease up a little. I shut everything down and made my way to bed quickly sending a text to let him know I was going to sleep.

  A quick response came back, “Sorry, taking longer than I thought. Love you.”

  ***

  Illarion

  Anger pulsed through me, but I refused to let her see that. I couldn’t let her feel it, I couldn’t let her know how much this was affecting me. So, as cowardly as it made me feel, I sent back a message telling her that I was still preoccupied.

  I scoffed at myself and how pathetic I was being.

  Elena left hours ago, and I couldn’t bring myself to go back to the apartment and tell Ace that I’d failed her. I couldn’t face the look of disappointment, and worse than that, her fear.

  She counted on me to be her rock and I was here to protect her. I slipped out of the meeting room and took a left, heading down to the courtyard. I walked with determination; this wasn’t going to end with the Agency locking her up. I balled my fists at my side, focusing on keeping myself as level headed as possible.

  I wasn’t walking with any intention or any destination in mind. I had to get out, I needed air. And I needed to think. I’d dared to let myself believe that we could somehow walk away from this and that somehow, I could talk Elena and Aurel down.

  Taking a right down a dark alley it led me to the marketplace. Nothing was open, it was just after ten, but the dim generator lights would be comforting and the absence of people even more so.

  My disappointment in Aurel and Elena was consuming and that was something else I couldn’t let her see. It broke my heart. We’d all been through so much and I couldn’t understand how they could abandon us like that.

  Understanding was always there though, he hated what was happening even though he just believed she was losing her mind, and sometimes I wondered whether that was worse.

  ***

  Ace

  A quiet place, a familiar place.

  It’s warm and cozy, light gently filtering through the blinds and it’s all suddenly ripped from me.

  The light is stolen, and the room is plunged into darkness, I can’t see anything, but I can still hear…there’s a quiet crying, a baby, somewhere off in the distance, my heart races and kicks me into gear.

  I run, rushing around in the dark, but wherever I go, the crying gets softer, I’m moving in the wrong direction, damn it. I keep moving, keep listening, keep feeling around in the dark and then, it stops.

  My eyes dart around, I’m not alone, no, there’s someone else here, someone who wants their presence known but not yet. I stop and pace myself, trying to breathe quietly but my breaths are too loud, I have to be quiet, I have to stay safe…

  ‘You’re never going to be safe, Acacia, as long as you’re still here.’

  ‘Leave.’ I say firmly.

  I’m not afraid. This is nothing new.

  ‘No? You’re not afraid?’ He coos. ‘I can hear your heart racing, I can hear the blood rushing through your veins, your pulse thundering above your breast.’

  ‘Get out of my head.’

  ‘I’m not in your head Ace. I am you, I’m inside you, I’m a part of you.’

  ‘Leave!’

  ‘The sooner you accept that, the sooner you and I can begin the work we need to do.’

  ‘I’m not doing anything with you.’

  A firm, painful grip tightens around my throat and I’m pulled forward into a hard body, a body I’ve memorized in my nightmares, his scent, the heat from his breath.

  ‘You know that isn’t true, don’t you? You can sense it; you can feel the end coming and you know it ends with me.’

  ‘No.’ I say, ‘I will not let you.’

  ‘You already have, and you don’t even know it.’

  My eyes shot open, darting around in the dark, Christ, another nightmare.

  My jaw was tense, and I felt like I’d been grinding my teeth all night. Illarion still wasn’t here, he wasn’t in the apartment and I had no idea how long he’d been gone. I checked my phone hoping that he’d sent another message, nothing.

  Sweat had beaded across my face, sticking my hair to my forehead, the shirt I’d been sleeping in was a write-off. I pulled it off, tossing it to the side of the bed and lay back down, exhaling.

  In, then out. Slowly.

  These dreams, these realm crossing trips, were getting intense. Dalca was growing stronger and it didn’t take a genius to work out that I was getting weaker. Like I was on autopilot, I reached for the box of Advil on the side table and took a couple with the water beside my bed.

  He was literally sucking my soul from me, well, my essence—the Divine powers inside me, but, I was also able to fight back, he sensed it and panicked.

  It didn’t matter now, the damage was done, I was barely containing my shit and if I didn’t get some air, I’d completely break down.

  With a little effort, I dragged myself free from the bed and rushed to the small window and pried it open as far as the safety lock would allow.

  Damn it, why did the windows in apartments always come with those stupid things? Holding my breath until there was enough room to stick my head out, I inhaled deeply, eagerly sucking in the cool, night air.

  Minutes turned into almost an hour and when the door to the apartment opened and I felt Illarion’s presence fill the space, I slumped into the wall, crumbling at the window.

  ‘Ace?’ He called, his voice immediately took on a rough edge. ‘What happened?’

  ‘Nightmare.’ I forced through shaky breaths, gripping the ledge like a lifeline. ‘You weren’t here so I, I needed air.’

  Without a word, he knelt before me his eyes sea
rching mine.

  ‘Come on.’ He said, helping me up. ‘You need to get up, you’re freezing.’

  ‘Where were you?’

  ‘Doesn’t matter now, are you okay?’

  As if in response, my body began to tremble, melting in to his touch.

  With little more than a gentle caress, everything slowly unlocked and as though all the energy was sucked from me, I collapsed into the sheets and sleep claimed me.

  ***

  As the morning came, he was still beside me, wide awake and gently drawing circles over my shoulder.

  ‘You didn’t sleep?’

  ‘I wanted to be here in case you had another dream.’ He said with a quiet breath and then gentle kiss found me before he pulled back and smiled.

  ‘We have to leave, today.’ He said.

  ‘We should have left last night.’

  ‘You needed to rest. Get your stuff together, whatever you need, and we’ll leave in a few hours.’

  ‘Already packed.’

  ‘Good, lyubov.’ He smiled.

  I peeled myself from his arms and got out of the bed making a beeline for the bathroom. A hot shower was on the cards.

  ‘I’ll be back soon; I’ve just got some things to take care of.’

  He was being secretive, but I nodded to myself and tried to push it to the back of my mind. I couldn’t get a read on anything and I couldn’t afford to be worrying about that right now. I had to focus on keeping my mind as stable as possible and I had to ensure that Dalca wasn’t about to creep up on me at any given moment.

  Illarion left and I made myself a coffee. While the kettle did its thing, I took a shower.

  The familiar rush swept over me as a subtle shift of energy caught my attention. I wiped the water from my eyes and in my peripheral, I caught a glimpse of his face.

  No. It wasn’t just a mass of shapeless shadows now, it was clearer, in color. It was him.

  A choked cry was lost in the roar of the shower as I stumbled backwards, hitting myself against the edge of the shower door.

  Rubbing the rapidly forming bruise on my shoulder, my eyes darted around. There was nothing there. Of course, there wasn’t. My breath was stuck in my lungs, like ice it clung to me, weighing me down.

  Oh God.

  The tears came hard and without warning and whatever composure I was holding together, crumpled like a badly written screenplay.