Deadly Lover (38 page)

He lowered her to her feet and framed her face with his hands. He bent down and rested his forehead against hers.

Then he
slipped
away.

Lily slid down the wall until her butt hit the floor. The slash low on her belly had started to throb. She pressed her hand to the gash and held it steady as blood oozed thickly around her fingertips. She was hurt worse than she’d thought. The sound of her father’s favorite Jazz spilled from the speakers like a funeral dirge. Her funeral dirge. No. It would be Timothy Perry’s funeral dirge.

Together, she and Jolaj would see to it.

Jolaj
synced
in the Ormney Affairs office—the nearest place he could appear, coated in blood, and not risk causing a riot or being shot on sight. Even there, the receptionist screamed and ducked under his desk. A woman in a suit leaned out of an office down the hall. Jolaj strode toward her, wondering how in the deep dark he could manage to look nonthreatening. When Lily had injected him, he’d been able to make a partial
slip
to avoid most of the dose, but the rest was still in his system. He kept his hands low and spoke as calmly as his racing heart allowed.

“I need your assistance.”

She swallowed then nodded. “What can I do?”

Slowly, Jolaj reached out, palm up. “I need your com-link.”

The woman startled then dug hurriedly in her pocket. She came up with a shiny, slender rectangle. “Link activate,” she said, then laid the device in Jolaj's blood smeared hand.

He’d hurt Lily. He’d made her bleed. The thought tied his guts in knots of pain.

Leaving her there had torn shredded him. He had to get her out before Timothy Perry's failsafe triggered, but he couldn't risk being seen on any of the surveillance cameras either. If his actions caused Sara's death, Lily would never forgive him.

“Connect Brian O'Leary.”

After a pause, Lily's brother came on. “Hello?”

“Lily is locked in the storm shelter beneath the Federal Building. I need to shut down all power and communication to the subfloors of this building immediately.”

“Jolaj?”

“Yes.”

“Give me ninety seconds, then go.”

Jolaj barely contained a roar of satisfaction. Finally, he could breathe again. He could get her out in time.

He handed the link back to the woman. “Contact Metro Detective Sean O’Leary and tell him his sister Sara was kidnapped by a man named Timothy Perry. He released her, but she’s still in danger and somewhere in the area of Old Duval Road.”

The moment she acknowledged his request he
slipped
toward
out-of-sync
and
slipped
back into the darkened corridor outside of the room where he'd left Lily. Blindly, he felt for the door, then the wall near the control panel. Sinking his claws into the plaster, he dug for the security seal then yanked free the mechanism locking the door shut.

As the door opened, Lily’s scent filled his lungs. The sound of her breathing filled up his heart. She jumped when he touched her, then she clung to him.

“My strong, beautiful Lily. Please forgive me.”

“I’m okay. We’re all right.” Her hands found his face. Her trembling fingers traced his lips then she pressed her lips to his.

The primitive part of his brain wanted to take her, there on the floor, in the dark, but reason pushed the need away. He returned her kiss until her lips stilled. Rubbing his face against hers, he lifted her to her feet.

She moved stiffly, clutching his arm as he led her through the exit. He hated that he was responsible for her being battered and bruised. But to wallow in fruitless recrimination would be selfish. He had to be strong for her now.

He led her down the corridor to the elevator where he had to pry open the doors. Enough light sifted down the shaft from above that he could see the emergency ladder. With Lily's human eyes it was unlikely she could see anything at all. He pulled her forward and put her hands on the rungs.

She stopped and made him listen. “Sara. Please.”

“I sent a message to Sean.”

“You can be there faster.”

He didn’t want to leave her, but he knew she needed him to see to the things she couldn’t.

“I'll be fine,” she said. “Please go.”

He fisted his hand in her hair, careful not to pull, and brought it to his nose. He needed her scent in his lungs. “Brian is on his way here. He’ll be here soon to take care of you.”

“Good,” she said. “I'll meet you there. Be careful.”

Jolaj pressed his lips to her temple, then he
slipped
.

The Ormney Affairs office filled his vision again. This time the receptionist didn’t scream. A small crowd had gathered in the hallway. The woman who’d been there earlier broke away and strode toward him. She held up the link and Jolaj reached for it.

“It’s still active,” she said.

Even if he found Sara, it wouldn’t be enough. Not even close. He was going to make sure Timothy Perry didn't escape and he’d need help to accomplish all that must be done.

“Connect Zone Wide messaging. Kertu meet Jolaj, North Zone Gate, urgent. End.”

Lily had trusted him, believed in him again and again and he wasn’t going to let her down now.

Jolaj
slipped
, this time
syncing
at The Zone Gate. He had to wait only a heartbeat before Kertu appeared beside him. The man had been young at the time of The Crossing, yet even then Kertu’s
slip
ability had nearly matched his own.

“I need your help. We’ll have to
slip
. Will you follow me?” He hadn’t made that request in twenty years. Hadn’t believed he ever would again. Kertu nodded without hesitation and Jolaj initiated the transition. He reached out and laid a hand on Kertu’s shoulder and together they
slipped
toward
out-of-sync
.

He welcomed the reassuring pull of Kertu’s presence through the
slip
. When he began to
sync
, Kertu followed and they
synced
together in front of the O’Leary house. It was the only point of reference he had. The houses lining the street were quiet. A woman stood on the porch to the O’Leary home. She nodded as their gazes met. There was a weapon of some sort cradled in her arms.

Lily had said it would be a few houses up. He broke into a jog and Kertu kept pace beside him.

Together they worked their way into the backyard of the neighboring house. The fence gate already stood open, but they had to jump over the back fence line to reach the wooded area behind. Jolaj took in deep breaths, scenting the air. He had met Sara only twice, but each time she’d made a strong impression.

They threaded their way through the trees, parallel to the row of houses until he caught the scent. Kertu followed close, clearly alert and ready for anything.

They found Sara and Bradley huddled behind an oak tree. Bradley lay unconscious on the ground. Sara’s blouse gapped open and what was left of it was drenched in blood. She gripped a broken branch in her hand as if ready to fight.

“Sara,” he called, holding his distance. “It’s Jolaj. Lily sent me. My friend Kertu is here with me. We’re here to help you.”

The branch in her hand dipped downward, her shoulders drooping as if the stick had transmuted to lead. Jolaj kneeled down beside her. She flinched but didn’t pull away. Tears streaked her face.

She blinked up at him through swollen eyes. “Lily?”

Her tiny hands wrapped around his biceps.

“She's all right.”

“Thank God.” She closed her eyes on a sigh, but they sprang open wide after only seconds. “He can't be far.” Her voice shook as her hands tightened compulsively on his arm. “You have to stop him. He’s responsible for the deaths of all those people.”

“I’ll stop him.” Jolaj looked over her head to Kertu. “Remain here and keep them safe.”

Kertu nodded. “Keep your descendants always in your thoughts.”

The old words sounded odd in Jolaj’s ears. The Searchers had always parted with those words to remind each other remaining alive played an essential part in bringing their descendants into being. Those without mates had stopped using the saying when they’d realized they might never have those descendants.

“And you, my friend.”

Kertu gently pulled Sara’s hands away from Jolaj and drew her against his chest. Jolaj trusted his friend to care for Lily's cousin.

Jolaj back-tracked the trail Sara and Bradley had made. It led him to a plascrete storm shelter that had to be the room he and Lily had seen across the vid-link.

A house sat across a wide expanse of overgrown lawn. He
slipped
across the space and into the house to avoid being seen. A fresh scent trail lingered inside the house. Methodically, he searched room to room. The house looked unlived in. Preserved from some time in the past. Dust coated every surface. Cobwebs hung in the out of the way corners. He found the bedroom Perry had been in when they’d lost the vid feed, but found no sign of the bastard.

Sirens wailed in the distance and he cursed the deep dark. His quarry would be on guard.

Giving up on the house, Jolaj
slipped
to a spot outside, circled the house in a quick jog and found a scent trail at a side door. He looked around for any cover Perry might be using to set him up, then jogged forward.

Perry had a wide variety of delivery mechanisms for his damned drugs. Jolaj had been ready for the injection Lily had been forced to administer, but he might not be able fight off the effects if he caught another dose now.

Lily pushed through the elevator shaft’s emergency hatch on the ground floor and dragged herself through the narrow opening and onto cool beige tiling. She blinked at the bright light. Someone nearby shrieked, but Lily didn’t have the energy to look for the source. She flopped onto her back and stared at the high arched ceiling. The exclamations of the people who’d been in the lobby had to mean she looked as bad as she felt.

The climb had been long, but not beyond her normal capabilities. She’d lost a lot of blood. Jolaj had bloodied her to sell his performance.

He’d bloodied himself, too. Dread shivered across her rapidly chilling skin as she realized he might be seriously hurt or putting himself in a dangerous position. If Perry... No. Perry didn’t know Jolaj had survived his trap and even if he did, he couldn’t realize that, even drugged, Jolaj could
slip
across the city in minutes.

She wouldn’t lose Jolaj. Not now. Not ever.

Faces appeared above her. She should say something or do something, but her muscles weren’t cooperating.

“Are you okay? We called emergency response. Help is on the way.”

Sirens blared into her awareness then receded. Boots clattered across the tiled floor.

Someone was talking to her, pressing an insti-pressure pad against the slick surface of her abdomen. An oxygen boost mask appeared and slipped over her nose. The combination cleared her head enough that she could focus on faces.

A serious young woman in a med tech uniform leaned over her, pressing firmly on the pad. Lily reached for the woman’s arm to get her attention. The pressure made it hard to inhale despite the oxygen. “Okay, now,” she managed.

The woman eased back, leaving the pad in place. She grabbed a trauma scan bar and held it over Lily.

The other tech, a brawny blond with a crew cut dabbed at the blood on her face with steri-wipes.

He met her eyes. “There don’t seem to be any injuries under the blood.”

“No,” agreed Lily. “Splatter.”

“Should we be looking for another injured?” he wanted to know.

“No” Lily had to stop for a breath. “He left.”

“Lily!” She recognized the shout as Brian’s voice. He appeared at her side. She held a hand up and he clutched it between his palms. “You okay, sis?”

She pushed the oxygen boost away and nodded. “I have to get to Old Duval, Bri. I have to help Jo. Sara?”

“No word yet.” Brian looked to the female medic. “What’s her status?”

“Vitals strong,” the woman reported. “She needs a trauma blocker and a transfusion. She’s lost blood, luckily only one of the slashes is deep.”

There had been nothing of luck in it. Jolaj had fought the drugs to keep her safe. Lily squeezed Bri’s hand. “No med center,” she said. “Just a patch job. Sara and Jo...” She had to blink away tears before she could continue. “I have to get there.”

“Patch her up,” he said to the medic. “I promise she’ll get the care she needs as soon as everyone is out of harm’s way.”

Lily squeezed his hand in appreciation.

The medics cleaned her up and sealed the lacerations. Someone handed her an energy drink and a fresh tunic to replace her ripped top. With a little help from Brian, she got to her feet. Metro surrounded them. Lily didn’t know when they’d arrived. She leaned heavily on Brian and let him convince the officers to let them leave as they walked to the jet-hop he had waiting.

In less than fifteen minutes, Brian set the hopper down in front of the O’Leary house. A small crowd stood outside and Metro units dotted the length of the road into the distance. A medic unit waited, ready.

Aunt Jane came up and engulfed Lily in a tight hug. “They found Sara,” she said. “They metro officers are bringing her out now.”

“I’m so sorry,” said Lily. “I shouldn’t have gotten her involved.”

Aunt Jane pulled back and looked her in the eye. “None of that now. You’re not to blame. My children don’t need any help getting themselves in dangerous situations. It comes naturally.” Jane pushed a lock of hair away from Lily’s face. “They haven’t found the man who did this. Your Uncle’s back and he’s out looking. Brian said it's Timothy Perry.”

“That’s right.”

“Pat’s been to the old Perry house. There's no one there now.”

Lily nodded, thinking. She pulled out of her aunt’s arms. She knew exactly where he’d be. “Tell him to go to our old house.”

“It was sold years ago,” said Jane.

“I know, but that’s where he’ll be.”

“Okay.” Her aunt pulled her com-link out of her pocket and slipped it over her ear. She activated the link and gave Lily’s suggestion to her husband.