Final Hours (2 page)

Before she could do more than blink Kane shifted his pistol
and fired.

A laser thin blast burst out and burned across Guy’s right
arm. He cursed, his right hand falling away from Elizabeth’s throat, taking the
knife with it.

She stomped on his foot with the heel of her boot and jerked
out of his grip, running toward Kane.

“Get down!”

His warning had her hitting the ground—just before Guy’s
knife sliced through the air. The blade sank to the hilt in Kane’s right
shoulder. He staggered, dropped to one knee.

“Elizabeth.” His raw voice squeezed her heart. “Get—behind
me.”

She crawled toward him. His weapon never wavered, pointed at
Guy’s chest. When she got beside him, she saw how badly his right arm shook.
The effort to keep his weapon aimed on Guy had sweat sliding down his face.

“Kane—”

“Behind me.” She obeyed, crawled around him. Then she looked
back at Guy. He clutched his arm, studying her with obvious surprise. She
didn’t blame him; she’d surprised herself more than once in the last few
minutes. “Give yourself up.”

“It seems, my friend, that this time I have the slight
advantage. I will take it.”

“Guy, don’t—” Guy touched the device strapped to his right
wrist and stepped back into the black hole that appeared behind him. Gold light
wrapped around him, and he disappeared. “Damn it.”

Kane lowered the pistol, and Elizabeth waited for him to
collapse. He swayed, away from her; she lurched forward and caught him before
his injured shoulder hit the hard ground. She rested his head on her thigh,
gently brushed hair off his forehead, and finally noticed the three long,
narrow scars on his right cheek. Old scars.

“Kane?” Blood spread over his olive green coat, the knife
hilt trembling with every harsh breath. His face was shock white, the scars on
his cheek prominent, even under the dark scruff. He kept his eyes closed tight,
against what must have been incredible pain. “Talk to me, please.”

“Bloody hell.” He muttered it through clenched teeth, and
opened his eyes.

“Is he the former friend?”

Kane nodded, then let out a moan. “I need to get back to
my—people.” He stumbled over the last word, like he meant to say something
else.

“What can I do?”

He cursed under his breath, and finally met Elizabeth’s
gaze. “I don’t want to ask you, after placing you in danger.”

“I’m not going anywhere, so ask.”

“I need your help. I can’t travel injured on my—damn—” His shoulder
twitched. With a moan she knew he tried to muffle, he clutched his arm, started
to pull away from her.

“No, you don’t. Stay put, and tell me what I can do to
help.” Surprise flashed through her. Elizabeth never took charge—it left her
too exposed to criticism, ridicule, scorn. But this man protected her, and made
her feel—stronger. That she could take on more, be the better person she got a
glimpse of these last two weeks. “Tell me, Kane.”

“I need you to take me home.”

She swallowed, surprised again by how little fear that
brought on. No panic, just—anticipation. This man really did give her courage
she had never felt before.

“Okay.”

It was his turn to look surprised. “Elizabeth—” A sharp cry
cut him off.

“No giving me time to change my mind. Now what do I do?”

“You have to—remove the knife. I can’t go through the portal
with it.”

Her heart skipped. “You could bleed out—”

“I will be trapped in between, if you don’t. This gives me a
chance.” He laid blood tacky fingers on her wrist. “I understand if you can’t
be doing this.”

I won’t turn chicken now—not when he saved my life.

“I can.” She took in a shaky breath, and reached for the
knife hilt, halting when she spotted the device on his wrist. The same device
that Guy used to escape. “Do you need to—set something? Warn someone you’re
coming back with company?”

“I can’t,” he whispered, staring up at her. “They will shut
down the portal if they know I’m breaking Rule Number One.”

“Okay. Before I pull this out, and ruin any chance of asking
questions,” she smiled at his choked laugh. “Give me the list of what I need to
do.”

“The black button, just under the screen.” His voice faded
more with every word, until Elizabeth was practically on top of him to hear the
next instruction. “Push it, right after you—remove the knife. Default, back to
lab.”

“And that would be where?”

“London.” He took in a rasping breath. “My—London.” His
shoulder convulsed, and he tried to curl around it.

“Enough.” Elizabeth grabbed his left shoulder, eased him
back to her leg. “Hold still, Kane, please.” She twisted the length of her hair
and flipped it over her shoulder, to keep it out of her way. God help her, he
looked so pale. She took a shaky breath, brushed her fingers over his scarred
cheek. “I’m so sorry, but this is really going to hurt.”

Before she could talk herself out of it she gripped the
hilt, braced her other hand against the ground and yanked at the knife.

Kane let out a raw gasp, clawing her wrist. Elizabeth
blinked through the tears burning her eyes and yanked again. She nearly lost
her balance when the knife slid out of his shoulder.

Instead of throwing it away in disgust, she held on to it,
and used her left hand to press hard on his shoulder. Blood flowed through her
fingers, hot and thick—and far too much of it.

Kane stared at her, his face bathed in sweat. It was obvious
that he fought to stay conscious, that he would lose the battle soon.

“Okay,” she whispered, sliding the knife in her jacket
pocket. “Here we go.”

After a final look around, she moved her right hand to the
device, her finger hovering over the black button. Once she pushed it, she knew
her life would never be the same.

“Ready?” Kane nodded, swallowing as he closed his eyes.
“Hold on to me.”

She felt his left arm slide across her back, his hand
gripping her waist. Not tight enough, but she planned to hold on to him the
second after she sent them—wherever.

God—if you can hear me, please keep an eye on us.

She looked into Kane’s eyes and pushed the button.

A black circle
appeared right in front of her.
Like an enormous open mouth.

Before she had time to regret her decision, gold light
whipped out and yanked them off the street and into complete darkness.

Elizabeth tried to scream. Pressure clamped around her
lungs, gave only enough for her to take in shallow breaths. She decided to save
her screaming for later, when she had plenty of oxygen.

Reality twisted, and lightning quick flashes of cityscapes shot
out of the nightmare darkness. They disappeared before she could recognize
anything beyond buildings.

The one real thing was Kane, holding on to her. His blood
still poured through her fingers, and she knew if they didn’t get to where they
were going fast, he would die in this darkness, leaving her alone. Her waist
length hair flew around them, tossed by invisible winds. Elizabeth didn’t dare
let go of Kane to rein it in.

His left hand inched up her back, through her wild hair, and
she understood what he wanted. Leaning down, she stopped when she felt her ear
touch his lips.

“Almost there.” She didn’t know how she heard him, when his
voice came out more breath than sound. “Stay—with me, no matter what. Promise.”

She nodded, felt him relax—and his hand fell away.

No—

Elizabeth tightened her grip on him, and pressed her ear
against his chest, listening for a heartbeat. Relief left her lightheaded when
she found it, faint, but steady.

One of the cityscapes shot past, but instead of
disappearing, it curved around them, stretching until it became a room, filled
with people. The darkness shoved one last time and threw Elizabeth and Kane
through the light.

They tumbled across a hard, ice cold floor, landing inches
from the edge of a platform. Elizabeth crawled across the floor to Kane, tried
to ignore the fact that her stomach felt like it was twisting inside out.

“Kane.” She turned him over, her heart pounding at the sight
of so much blood. “We made it, Kane, now open your eyes.” She pressed her hand
on his wound—and he bolted awake.

“Hell—” He grabbed her wrist, and struggled to focus.
“Elizabeth?”

“We made it.” She checked him for any other wounds he might
have gotten from their rough landing, and noticed the uniform he wore under his
greatcoat. It was a British Expeditionary Force uniform. What looked like an
authentic BEF uniform. Why was he—

“Security!” The husky female voice brought her head up. “Get
Security in here, now!” Elizabeth found the woman as she pushed through the
crowd standing in front of the—circle. They landed in a perfect, black granite
circle. The woman reached the edge of the circle and pointed a familiar silver
pistol. At Elizabeth. “Get your hands off my agent, now.”

“I would, but he’ll bleed to death if I do.”

The woman blinked behind her glasses; thick glasses that
emphasized beautiful black eyes. “Is it safe yet?”

“Five seconds, Doc.”

She let out a sigh. “Please refrain from calling me Doc.”

“Right, Doc. As soon as you start calling me Mac instead of
Mr. Macaffrey.” Humor edged the man’s voice, the distinctive Texas accent
surprising Elizabeth. “And… now. All clear.”

The woman stepped up to the circle and rushed over to them,
dropping to her knees beside Kane. “Get the med techs, Mr. Macaffrey. Now. I
don’t want him moved until they have examined him.” Those big, dark eyes moved
to Elizabeth. “Tell me what happened.”

Elizabeth obeyed, summarizing as fast as she could. The
woman touched Kane’s wrist when Elizabeth mentioned Guy.

“He is responsible for the injury, then.”

“The knife was meant for me,” Elizabeth said, her voice not
quite steady. “Kane’s warning saved my life.”

“And you bringing him home may save his.” She glanced over
her shoulder, then lowered her voice, so only Elizabeth could hear. “He told
you of the rule? That no one outside this agency is allowed within these
walls?”

“Yes.”

Another glance prompted Elizabeth to follow her gaze. She
met the intense, ice blue eyes of the man standing at the edge of the platform.
He studied her, one eyebrow raised. She lowered her head and made a mental note
to stay under his radar.

The woman next to her cleared her throat, like she knew what
Elizabeth was thinking. “Do you know where you are?”

Elizabeth studied her, decided to tell the truth. “London.
I’m just not sure of the when.”

Gasps and mutters rose from the crowd behind them. The woman
lifted her head, pushed the black glasses up her nose. “Back to your stations.”
The whispers followed them as they headed back to the enormous machines and
consoles scattered around the equally enormous room. “Forgive my rudeness. I am
Dr. Chelssie Kinimoto.”

“Elizabeth Barritt.” She met Dr. Kinimoto’s sharp gaze. “I’m
in serious trouble, aren’t I?”

“That, Elizabeth, will depend on Agent Kane.”

They both leaned over him. Elizabeth applied more pressure
to his shoulder. Out of the corner of her eye she saw black uniforms, and
weapons. Security. More uniforms appeared, a flash of blue as they climbed to
the platform.

“You can let him go now, miss.” An older man touched her
shoulder. “We’ll be taking care of him. Thank you for bringing him home.”

The warmth in his voice surprised her. When she met the
rich, dark brown eyes, she saw compassion, and fear for Kane.

She eased her hand off his shoulder, and Dr. Kinimoto pulled
her back, giving the techs room to work over him.

“You will be checked out as well,” Dr. Kinimoto said.
“Standard procedure.”

She left Elizabeth alone and stalked across the huge room.

“Doc can be a cold one.” The same Texas-laced voice had her
looking up. Its owner flashed her a brilliant smile, and crouched down beside
her. “But she has a soft spot for our Kane, no lie.”

“You’re not a Brit.”

He laughed. “What gave me away?” He pulled a handkerchief
out of his lab coat pocket. Grateful, she took it and wiped her hands, enough to
not leave bloody fingerprints all over everything. She tucked it in her already
ruined suede jacket just before his big hands closed around her waist. “Come
on—up you get.” He pulled her to her feet, and she found herself nose to chest
with him. She tilted her chin, met the amused blue eyes. “I’m Matt Macaffrey.
You can call me Mac.”

“Elizabeth.” She shook the big, warm hand. Callouses lined his
palms. “Rancher?”

“On the nose. My parents own a horse ranch. I started riding
before I could walk.” He led her off the platform, smiled at the half dozen Security
officers as he walked her right past them.

“How did you end up here?”

“Ah—there’s a story that needs to be told over a tall glass
of beer. And I’m not the only American here. Let’s get you over to Medical,
make sure you’re as fine as you look.”

He winked at her, and she found herself smiling at him. He
was outrageous, but under the humor, she sensed an innate kindness. He truly
cared about someone other than himself. In her experience, that made him rare,
and worth knowing.

Unseen hands startled her as they eased the suede jacket
off, and left her vulnerable in the thin, sleeveless shirt.

She kept waiting for panic to rear its ugly head, with all
these strangers surrounding her, touching her. Instead, all she felt was
worry—for Kane, and how he might be ostracized for bringing her with him.

“Is Kane—in trouble?”

“For dragging you along? I’d say no, seeing as he’s Doc’s
favorite. If that rule-breaking ends up saving his life, it’ll turn into a
definite no.”

“And—me?” Her voice squeaked.

“As the life saver, you’ll probably earn a get out of jail
free card. Just this once.”

His smile eased the pressure in her chest. Which let her
stomach come front and center to tell her just how unhappy it was about her
recent adventure.

“I think—” She clapped one hand over her mouth as her
stomach heaved.

“I’ve got you.” Mac hooked his hands under her elbows and carried
her to a tall open trash can—right before she threw up everything but her
stomach lining. He gently rubbed her back, holding her hair out of the way with
his free hand. “Let it all out, sweetheart. You’ll feel better after.”

Once Elizabeth was pretty sure she’d given up everything
left in her stomach, she wiped her mouth with the second handkerchief Mac
offered, and sagged against his arm. He must have kept a supply; if this was
the usual reaction to traveling through that—whatever, she understood why.
Slowly, like he knew she would start up again if she moved too fast, Mac eased
her to the floor. The cool linoleum felt good on her overheated skin.

“Thank you,” she whispered. She flinched as the two words
flayed her raw throat.

“Not my first rodeo.” He crouched in front of her, handed
her a bottle of water. “Small sips, until your stomach settles. Once you’re
ready, I’ll get you off the floor, and to a nice, soft bed.”

It took a few minutes, but Mac’s banter and the water
revived her enough to try standing. Mac wrapped his arm around her waist and
lifted her like she weighed nothing.

“Take some time to get your land legs. Let me know when.”

“Okay.” Her legs felt like rubber, but she wanted to get to
Kane, and felt she had taken more than enough of Mac’s time. She was pretty
sure he would already be dressed down for walking her past Security. “Ready.”

Mac led her toward the door—and jerked to a halt when a
figure stepped in front of them. “Out of my way, Harper.”

“Once you introduce us, Mr. Macaffrey.” His deep voice
curled around her like silk. But when she met those ice blue eyes, she saw only
calculation, like he was trying to determine how useful she could be to him. “I
am Glendon Harper.”

She heard Mac curse under his breath. “You left something
out, rat bastard.”

Harper merely smiled at him. It left Elizabeth even colder.
“I am a—prospective consultant to the project.”

“Over your dead body.”

The smile died, and left behind an angry man.

“Take care, Macaffrey.” He lowered his voice so only they
could hear. “Certain—acquaintances may not appreciate your humor.”

He turned on one heel and stalked out of the room. Dr.
Kinimoto ran out after him, gave Mac the evil eye as she passed them.

Mac cursed under his breath. “Meddling, self-serving prick.”

“So—not friends, then?”

His laughter echoed in the huge lab. “Oh, I like you,
sweetheart. Let’s get you to Medical. Show is over, people.”

Mac led her out the door and down the corridor, turning
right at the next corner. It looked like any office building at home; scuffed
linoleum, fluorescent light, drab walls. Reality smacked her when they walked through
the door labeled Medical Observation Room.

The first thing she saw was a window that took up half the
long wall—and Kane. He was on the other side of that window, stretched out on a
metal table, with a tall machine hovering over him.

They moved to the window, and he hit a small switch on the
side of the frame. The hum and whir of moving mechanics burst through a speaker
above her head.

Elizabeth clutched the window ledge as robotic arms moved
above his bare torso, human-like hands running over his skin. She relaxed when
she saw the reason on the wall behind the machine; it was mapping him. The
outline of Kane’s upper body started to fill in, a dull red glow at his right
shoulder.

Once it finished, the machine carefully turned Kane on his
left side, and she spotted the bandage on his shoulder. The fear she didn’t
know still gripped her let go. Relief rushed in to replace it.

“Doing okay, sweetheart? I know there’s a lot to take in.”

“The machine—it healed him?”

Mac smiled. “Not exactly. But there will be a new scar under
that bandage, thanks to technology. You’ll have to get Doc to explain it—I only
know it works, and works fast. Our boy’s going to be just fine, after some
R&R.”

Elizabeth didn’t question; she knew she was in the future.
Kane’s future. How far from her own time was something she’d find out. Even if
they didn’t want her to know.

The robotic arm helped Kane sit. He was conscious, that low,
accented voice still raw as he talked to whoever ran the machine. With obvious
effort he swung his legs off the table, sweat sliding down broad, muscular shoulders.

Elizabeth forgot all about admiring those shoulders as his
bare back came into view.

Thick, ugly scars crisscrossed each other, marking nearly
every inch of skin. She recognized those scars, from photos she had seen of
slaves, of men tortured under the whip.

“Oh, God—”

“Come on.” Mac grabbed her around the waist and hustled her
out of the observation room. “Time for your own check-up.”

Elizabeth knew that was a convenient excuse. She had a
feeling she was not supposed to see Kane’s back.

They made it as far as the hallway when two men and a woman
in black Security uniforms blocked their path, hands on their weapons holsters.

The woman moved to Elizabeth. “You will need to come with
us, miss.”

“What the hell, Colette.” Mac stepped in front of her, and
got the sleek silver barrel of a pistol shoved in his face for the effort.

Elizabeth pressed her back against the door, recognized the
familiar anxiety that came before the panic. She closed her hand around the
gold locket, and forced herself to breathe, slowly. It was just a
misunderstanding; all she had to do was go with them and straighten it out. If
she could wrangle in two dozen bored and antsy fifth graders, she could handle
this.

“Okay.” She dropped her hand and stepped toward the woman
who held the pistol.
Colette—remember, she’s a person, just doing her job.
The thought didn’t help. “I’ll go with you. Please put that away—there’s no
need for it. I won’t resist, and Mac won’t either.” She glanced at him, shook
her head slightly.