Code Name: Ghost (A Warrior's Challenge 1) (48 page)

“No way,” she spit back, and grabbed his
shirt throwing it across her shoulders. He snatched the weapon
laying on the night table into his hand. A cool wind swept past her
as he closed the door behind him.

He whirled around when she cracked the door
and caught up to him in the hallway.

“Kayla, get in the goddamn bathroom.”

“Get moving.”

“Jesus Christ, woman.” He snatched her hand
into his muttering, “Spending the rest of my life with you is going
to drive me to drinking.”

She blinked, but before she could think, he
was yanking her behind him.

Following him through the house, he stopped
at the patio door, his eyes searching. The sun had broken over the
trees and filled the backyard with early light. She darted a look
at the kitchen clock above the sink. Seven-thirty.

Thane cracked the door quietly. “Not one
foot outside,” he warned, and slipped through it.

She kept her eyes glued to him for as long
as she could, but when he disappeared from her view, her heart
started to bang in her chest. Skirting the wall, she darted across
the house to the front window. The street was empty except for a
city truck parked in front. A dog yapped from next door followed by
a quick shout. It wasn’t Thane.
Oh, God.
She flew out the
front door and around the house. Thane’s muscled arm coiled around
a young guy’s throat, ready to snap his neck.

“Thane, no!” she yelled. The man’s blonde
bangs covered one eye, but not the terror in them. He tried to
break Thane’s lock on his throat, but it looked more like a fish
flapping helplessly.

“Lady,” he squeaked, his air almost cut off.
“Help.”

“Thane, let go,” she shouted at him. “He’s
not the Shark.” The deadly fury burning in Thane’s eyes frightened
her. It was like his soul had flown away. “Thane,” she yelled at
the top of her lungs. She breathed out, seeing him relax his
grip.

“Who are you?” he growled, frightening the
kid even more.

“Water…” he coughed, and yanked himself
away, only because Thane let him. “Work for water, the county.”

Oh, no.

“You’re not Jordan,” Thane barked at
him.

“No,” he said messaging his throat. “I’m
Rick. Jordan’s on vacation. Jesus! What the hell’s the matter with
you, man?”

Thane’s deadly gaze diminished as he
realized he’d almost killed a city worker. “Sorry, Rick.” He jerked
his head. “Thought you were a serial killer.”

“A what?” Forehead wrinkling, he backed
away, putting more distance between them.

Kayla approached, the grass cool and dewy
under her feet. “Can I get you some water, Rick?”

“You people are crazy.”

She held her hand up, but Rick was already
hoofing it toward his truck, shoulder-checking at the same time.
Her eyelids fell to half-mast as she hinged her hands on her hips.
“You almost killed the meter reader, Commander.”

“Well, they should tell me if they’re gonna
change personnel,” he snapped, thrusting his arm out angrily.

She burst out laughing at him. “You’re the
Commander of a naval base, not the city. God, you can be
pompous.”

His eyes narrowed with a wicked glint. He
lunged for her and she high-tailed it away from him. Laughing, she
ran through the front door where he caught up to her. She heard
Thane close the door behind her, but the drumming in her heart
drowned everything else out. Her breath caught in her throat, and
then a scream shot from her mouth without warning. Scrambling
backwards, she thrust herself against Thane.

Pierced in the middle of the wooden coffee
table, a twelve-inch knife was stuck through the middle of what
could only be a human heart. Fresh blood pooled around it as if she
had just been murdered. The Shark was here only seconds ago, and
only seconds ago she’d left the house.

“Kay—”

Thane’s arms cinched around her. She
couldn’t take her eyes off it until he yanked her behind him. The
garage door sat open, blocking their view, and the coppery smell of
blood filled her nose.

He launched across the opening to the garage
and swept the weapon in front of him. “Stay there, Kayla,” he
warned, and disappeared from her view.

Her body had never been so cold. Ice coated
her spine making her legs heavy and her heart slow to a deadly low
thump, but she took a step anyway. “Oh—my—God.” Blood, so much
blood and torn flesh, her tongue dried with the sight. Thane filled
the doorway and slammed it closed behind him.

He wrapped one large arm around her
smothering her against his chest, then grabbed the phone.
“Lieutenant Manchester, it’s Commander Thane Austen.”

* * * *

Never in all her years would she forget the
sight of the woman splayed out on the hood of his car—never.
Police, military and civilian, swarmed the house. A cup of coffee
clutched between her fingers only warmed them. The rest of her
remained cold. The team had showed up and Mace had her cradled in
his arms.

“Kayla, it’s psychological warfare. He’s
trying to get off on terrorizing you, because he can’t get to you,”
Mace explained.

She jerked her head with a nod. The garage
door opener clanked and began a slow growl as it drew the main door
open. Turning, she saw the coroner’s vehicle backing into the
driveway. Mace’s arms tightened around her, and he rested his chin
on the top of her head. Everything was so brutally real now. The
finger had been disturbing, but this was totally different. The
Shark had been in the garage for who knew how long working on the
woman—skinning her body, mutilating her while they were in the
house. Her ears picked up Thane’s voice from behind her.

“How long?” he asked Manchester.

“She’s been dead for approximately an hour.
The Shark removed the glass from the garage window and then brought
the victim in through the side door.”

“He’s unraveling fast,” Thane said. “I’m not
BAU Behavior Analysis Unit but I know why he did this.”

“You’re assumptions are probably correct. In
his mind, he replaced the kill as best and close as he could to
Kayla. He’s going to come up with something inventive to get to
her, and he is highly intelligent,” Manchester warned.

They both rounded the couch. Thane knelt
down in front of her and took her hand. “Sweetheart, we’re going to
move you to Mace’s place. He lives on the base in a military run
condominium. We can secure it, watch it, and there’s no way the
Shark is going to get close to you.”

Numbness, like white noise, folded around
her soul to protect itself. An eerie silence, her body’s version of
the “quiet before the storm,” forged a wall between reality and her
emotions. “Work, I’m late for work.” Reaching up, she clutched
Thane’s trident like a talisman.

“Kayla. Oh, Jesus.”

Her mind told her Thane was close by, she
could hear him, but he sounded so far away.

“Please baby, hang on. It’s gonna be all
right.”

“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?”