Embrace the Night (12 page)

“Besides, these are high quality, custom made pistols. Trust me, they will do the job.” She holstered hers even as the words fell from her luscious, full lips.

Marcelo cleared his throat. “Let me explain the potion to you. It only takes a drop, anywhere on the skin, to render a sublimer's powers useless.” He placed his own pistol on his belt. “When it hits them, you'll see a yellowish glow. Also, it will stupefy them a bit, so they won't be lucid enough to flee.”

Junjie held up his pistol, gazing at it as if he'd gained a new respect for it. “Pretty impressive, Marcelo”

Tatiana glanced at her watch. “Our transport should be here any minute. This evening, we'll be staying in a rented condo near the port. A PHOENIX MMU, and a containment vehicle are already there, staffed and ready to haul away these guys once we bag them.”

Even though part of him hated having a female superior, he had to admit there was something very sexy about the Lieutenant when she took on this take-charge persona. The way she stood was mesmerizing—her pert chest thrust forward, fists propped on those ample, shapely hips. It was all he could do not to drool. Realizing she was still talking, and probably saying something important, he shook himself free of the spell she cast, and tried to focus on her words.

“Since we don't know the time of the exchange, we'll take up positions at the CSX terminal exactly at midnight.” Reaching behind her, she extracted a large, rolled piece of paper from a tube strapped to her back. Unrolling it on the polished oak coffee table in the center of the sitting area, she pointed to four marks on the map. “Junjie and I will cover the north and west sides. Marcelo, you and John will cover the south and east sides.”

They all indicated their understanding.

“Also, Marcelo,” she announced, re-rolling the map and placing it back in the sheath, “I'll need you to surround the area with a force field, to hamper any escape attempts.”

Marcelo nodded. “Not a problem, Lieutenant.”

“Good.” She blew out a breath.

For a second, their eyes met. He could swear he saw a glimmer of something in her brown eyes, something that reached out to him. Wanting to coax it out of her, he held her gaze.

The look grew more intense by the moment.

Everything around them seemed to fade away as they stared at each other. He could hear her breath, coming faster and faster...

A loud, but familiar sound invaded his ears.

She broke the contact, shifting her gaze toward the window.

He followed her eyes, and saw the black skids of the chopper touch down on the helipad outside.

“Our ride is here,” she shouted, and trotted toward the exit door at the rear, grabbing a fuchsia suitcase from the floor on the way.

He shook his head, and grabbed his things to follow his team. Whatever that long look had meant, there was no time to deal with it now.

CHAPTER 12

As darkness cloaked the Port of Wilmington, Tatiana was crouched behind a large shipping crate. The glowing green numbers on her watch told her that she and the team had taken their positions about ninety minutes ago. Pressing a button on the wireless communicator parked in her ear, she checked in with the rest of the operatives.

“Anybody seen any action?” Her voice was a low whisper as she asked the question.

“Not me.” Marcelo answered first.

“Nothing here, Lieutenant.” That was John.

Hearing that deep voice in her ear touched her in ways she didn't want to admit. Knowing he was probably still angry with her over the way she'd acted had an effect on her as well. She sighed, knowing none of that mattered now. Any reconciliation, if one could even happen between them, would have to wait until after the mission.

Stifling a yawn, she sat down on her knees. Her calves complained at supporting her weight on the hard, pebbly asphalt beneath her, but it wasn't as if she were there to relax. She needed to be ready to spring to her feet the moment something happened.

Her eyes scanned the horizon, looking westward. Junjie was covering that position, and he hadn't responded when she checked in.

That's when she saw it.

A single, red beam of light, flashing only for a fraction of a second.

It was the signal she'd been waiting for. Someone, or something, was approaching from the west.

She waited.

A blue beam flashed next, four quick times in succession. Then, it was extinguished just as quickly as it had appeared. If she hadn't been watching for it, she might have missed it.

Engaging her communicator again, she made a report.

“Agent Yu has signaled that four perps are approaching on the west side of the terminal. Get that field up quickly, Agent Spirelli.”

“Yes ma'am,” Marcelo answered.

A brief glance up allowed her to see the purplish tinge overhead. The crescent moon above turned an eerie shade of lavender, and she knew the sorcerer was at work.

“Everyone hold your positions. If you get a visual, signal.” She kept her voice low and even.

Cautiously, she raised herself about a half an inch up, just enough to see through a hole in the large shipping container she was posted behind.

And she saw him.

About seventy yards away, beneath the eaves of the warehouse, stood a lone figure. His stance gave him away as a man---his jeans clad legs were splayed almost defiantly. In the dim light, her tigress vision kicked in, and she could see him as if it were daytime. He wore an oversized black hooded sweatshirt, with the hood pulled up. His hands were shoved into his pockets, and with every inch of exposed skin covered, it was impossible to determine his ethnicity. Since she was seeing him in profile, she couldn't make out his face.

She didn't know how long the mysterious figure had been standing there, but if he'd heard her whispering, he didn't let on. His head tilted down, as if he were inspecting his black sneakers.

Tension gathered in her neck and shoulders, her muscles seizing up like five o'clock traffic on I-40. She could feel beads of perspiration popping out on her forehead, and she swiped away the dampness with the back of her hand. She had to let the team know what she was seeing, but without drawing attention to herself.

Even as she wondered who the hooded man was, and what role he played in this unfolding drama, she aimed her PHOENIX issued pen beam west, toward Junjie's position, and activated one brief red flash, followed by one blue flash.

Junjie's voice came through her communicator almost immediately. “I'm headed your way, Lieutenant.”

She wanted to tell him to stay low, but didn't. With a perp so close by, she couldn't risk speaking.

Wanting dearly to stretch, she shifted onto her bottom as quietly as possible and extended her legs in front of her. Looking east, she could see Junjie low crawling in her direction. With her superior night vision, it was easy to make out his face in the dark.

When he stopped near her feet, staying low behind the haphazard grouping of shipping crates, he peered between them.

She guessed he could see the guy, because he turned questioning eyes on her. Shrugging, she shook her head to let him know she had no clue to the man's identity.

Junjie donned night vision goggles to get a clearer look at the man. Then, without a word, he produced a special tranquilizer gun, equipped with night vision sight. She recognized the weapon, since she'd used it before. It was a high powered piece of equipment. The gun was already loaded, so as she ducked, he popped up above the crate and quickly fired a dart.

“Shit!” A curse rang out in the darkness.

A quick glanced around the crate, and she saw the man, lying prone on the concrete.

“Well, we bagged one.” Junjie spoke both to her, and into his communicator at the same time.

“Good,” John responded over the frequency, “because two are coming into my territory now. Both female.”

“Cover me, Lieutenant. I'm going to drag him over here.”

She nodded, and Junjie darted to the fallen man. As she watched, he carried the guy over to where she waited, and placed him on the ground.

As he landed, the hood fell back, and she could see his face clearly.

Her hand shot to her mouth. “Oh my God.”

“What is it?” Junjie's voice held concern.

Trembling, she whispered,“I know him.”

The shock and anger she felt at seeing him here were so great, her world reeled and swayed like a tree in a hurricane.

She could feel her canines extending in her mouth. The tigress wanted out...wanted to hurt the man already passed out in front of her.

She'd left her mark on him so long ago...now she wanted to finish him off.

CHAPTER 13

“How long will the tranquilizer keep him knocked out?” She could barely contain her rage as she looked on the face of Wyatt Rogers. Four jagged, flesh colored scars ran in parallel lines down the left side of his face to his neck. They were the marks she’d left on him, so he’d never forget her warning.

“I don’t know. It varies from person to person.” Junjie pulled out a zip tie, and prepared to restrain Wyatt. “Better do this now, to be on the safe side.”

Before he could grab his wrists, Wyatt bolted upright. He looked confused for a moment, until his eyes fell on her.

“Agent Yu, go seek out the ladies you saw earlier,” she said, keeping her tone calm and even. “I’ll handle him.”

“Are you sure?”

“Go!”

Junjie stood and sprinted away. As soon as she was alone with Wyatt, she spoke through anger clenched teeth. “I thought I told you to disappear.”

“You told me never to get near Tara or Ava again, and I haven’t.” He frowned as he tried to stand, and instead slumped back to the ground.

Making no attempt to keep the irritation out of her voice, she asked, “What the hell are you doing here, Wyatt? What’s your power?”

He looked away for a moment. “I don’t have a power. I just know how to make use of people who do.”

So he was the illustrious Merchant. If she weren’t so disgusted, she would have laughed in his face. “Please. You mean to tell me you could hatch an antiquities smuggling plot, but you couldn’t hold down a job to take care of my sister and niece?”

He shrugged. “I’m not cut out for a nine to five.”

She’d heard that lame excuse enough times. “Whatever, Wyatt.” She stood. “I’m taking you into custody.”

He faced her again, looking up to where she stood over him. A sinister expression came over his face. “I’m afraid I can’t let you do that, Tatiana.”

She watched him, and noticed he was looking behind her.

She cursed inwardly, realizing she shouldn't have let anger rule her decision making.

Spinning around, she saw the petite young woman barreling toward her only a moment before she made impact. Both women went crashing to the asphalt, just as Wyatt slithered away on his butt to avoid the collision.

The younger woman pinned her to the ground, swinging, scratching, and spewing nonsense. “Mama needs this!” Her shrill screams filled the night air around them.

Tatiana had no idea what she was talking about, but it didn’t matter. When that girl jumped on her, she was asking for it. Tatiana lurched upward, lifting her hips and torso off the ground. As the young woman tumbled off of her, she rolled over and grabbed her ankle.

The girl continued to scream, kicking and scrambling to get away. Even as she struggled, Tatiana could see her body fading in and out, like a lamp with a shortage. The girl was definitely a sublimer.

Tightening her grip on the girl’s ankle with the left hand, she used her other hand to grab the pistol containing Marcelo’s potion. Just as she gripped the trigger, the girl escaped her grasp and crawled away.

As the girl got to her feet, Tatiana stood and fired the pistol. The liquid propelled through the air, hitting the back of the young woman’s bare arm. A yellow glow emanated from the spot where she’d been hit. Seconds later, her flight sent her careening straight into a shipping crate, and she slid to the ground, whimpering.