KanesBounty (8 page)

Kane had expected the plane, but when his brother jogged
down the steps, he was shocked. As soon as Joshua’s feet hit the pavement, he
removed his sunglasses. He looked Lena up and down and smiled a bit too warmly.
“Ms. Cruz, I’m glad to see you are unharmed.”

Lena looked from Joshua to Kane. Their looks were too
similar not to notice. “Joshua Lakeland?”

He held his hand out and shook hers. He held it a bit longer
than was necessary. Kane’s temperature rose. Lena smiled brightly. Jealously
surged up from his gut.

His brother’s head turned sharply and he looked at him for a
long moment. “Good to see you, Kane.” He pulled his brother in for a quick hug.

Kane relaxed. “You too. I was expecting you to send the
ride. I didn’t realize you would fly all the way down here.”

Joshua cocked his head to one side. “You’re in trouble, I
come. You’d do the same for me.”

It was true. He would fly across a continent to help his
brother. He’d once flown around the world to do just that. Kane nodded and
said, “We ready to go?”

“She needs fuel. Is Sandy here?”

Kane shook his head. “We got here late and it’s a bit early
for Sandy to get up. I left him something.”

Joshua said, “Let’s get her fueled up and get the hell out
of here. You have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into, Kane.”

“I have some idea.” He turned to Lena, who had been
listening and watching everything. “You can go up and relax. We’ll be ready to
go shortly.” He handed her the duffle and she trotted up the steps. He watched
as her ass swayed with every step. When he turned back, Josh was watching him.

“You got a problem, bro.”

“I know.”

They moved quickly, fueling the jet and going through a
system checklist.

When it was all done, the brothers climbed the steps. Lena
sat comfortably, drinking a bottle of water and looking out the window. When
she heard them, she turned.

“I hope you don’t mind. I helped myself.” She lifted the
plastic bottle.

“Nope. That’s what it’s for.” Josh asked, “Where to?”

“Head for the northeast US. We need to find a place where we
can talk. Do you have a spot?” Kane asked.

“Maryland?”

“Perfect.”

“Don’t we need a flight plan?” Lena asked.

Kane shook his head. “Josh never uses them.”

Joshua smiled. “Seatbacks and tray tables, folks. Let’s get
gone. There’s some clean clothes in the closet.” He pointed to a cupboard and
left them alone in the cabin, but didn’t close the cockpit door. She went over
and opened the door, pulling out jeans and a blue shirt for him. She tossed
them over. There was another pair of jeans and a cream-colored blouse for her.
She stripped down and changed. “Why didn’t you tell him where to go? Don’t you
trust him?”

“Josh is the only person on the planet I do trust.”
Actually, he would amend that. In the last forty-eight hours, he’d grown to
trust Lena as well. He shed his dirty clothes for the clean ones Joshua had
provided and buckled his seat belt.

Kane watched his brother as he expertly maneuvered the plane
down the runway. Lena’s voice cut through his thoughts.

“Then why?”

The cabin had four luxurious bucket seats, which could be
pushed back to sleeping position. It had two tables that pulled out and a small
couch tucked into the corner. The plane was top of the line. Lena looked
perfect seated in it. He needed to keep his head clear and not be distracted by
how much he loved looking at her, not to mention touching her. “We need a plan.
It’s better to go somewhere we’ll be safe, can tell Josh the situation and find
out what he knows before we go see your grandmother. We’re going to have to ask
a lot of my brother in the next few days. Once we see Grandma and find out what
she can tell us about the visions, someone is going to have to protect her. No
doubt Thorn is waiting for just this kind of move. He’ll be on us as soon as we
surface.”

Lena looked down at the carpet. “Should I just go to
Boston?”

He hated the sorrow in her voice.

They were airborne. He unbuckled his seat belt and turned
toward her. “You’re going to have to trust me, Lena. I’m not going to let
anything happen to your grandmother.”

“She’s all I have.” A single tear slid down her cheek.

He kissed it away. What was the constant tightening of his
chest? “That’s not exactly true, but I understand.”

She straightened her shoulders and her chest rose in a deep
intake of breath that she let out slowly. “I thought you said you and your
brother were not close?”

He shrugged. “I should warn you that he can hear us.”

She looked toward the cabin. Joshua waved his hand,
indicating he could indeed hear them. “Does he have some kind of super hearing
or something?”

“No, he has the cabin wired. He’s a spy, what do you
expect?”

“Should I not ask about your relationship with him while
he’s listening?”

Kane watched his brother’s shoulders. He thought he detected
some stiffness in them and maybe sensed a bit of trepidation from the older
Lakeland. “It’s okay with me. He knows what our relationship is.”

When he didn’t go on, she said, “Well.”

“I barely remember him from the orphanage. He was gone by
the time I was five years old. The people that ran the place talked about how
happy they were to have gotten rid of him and at a great price.”

“Price? They sold him?”

“Of course.” He’d worked for years to suppress the anger he
had for the people from the orphanage. He almost managed it. Almost. “They
profit from the company taking on a gifted child.”

“So you grew up apart. Does he remember?”

The word,
yes
, rang loudly in Kane’s head. He looked
at the cockpit. “He was older, and as they said, gifted. He remembers.”

“How did you reconnect?”

“He found me when I was finishing my training.”

“Have you spent a lot of time together?”

“When we can or if there’s a need, we see each other.”

“Like today.” She sounded sad.

“There have been other times that were not quite so rushed.”

There was a long pause. He could feel her reluctance to say
what was on her mind and he was sure Joshua could feel it too. “If he’s a spy,
what makes you think we can trust him?”

“He’s my brother.”

She looked toward the cockpit. “Brothers betray each other.
It happens all the time.”

“You’re right, it does, but not with Joshua and me.”

“Okay.” She didn’t question the matter further. Instead, she
curled her feet up under her firm, round ass and leaned her head over onto his
shoulder.

He really had no idea what the tightness in his chest was
from. When he looked down at her creamy skin resting against his shoulder and
her dark eyelashes soft against her cheek, he thought his body might burst.

He looked toward the cockpit door and Joshua had turned
around in the pilot’s seat. He looked back at them with an expression on his
face Kane couldn’t place. Then his older brother smiled and turned back toward
the clouds ahead.

* * * * *

They didn’t talk much once Joshua landed the plane. A car
was waiting at the private airport. There was no driver, just the car with the
keys in it. Kane opened the front door on the passenger side and held it for
Lena.

He felt her trepidation, but she got in the car next to his
brother and didn’t say a word. Once he was in the backseat, Joshua drove them
from the airport to a small waterfront house twenty minutes away.

The place was Spartan. A couch, a chair and a very small
coffee table. The galley kitchen was completely empty except for coffee and a
coffeepot. The bedroom had a twin bed, but no sheets, pillows or blankets.

“What is this place?” she asked.

“Safe house,” Joshua said.

“It could use a woman’s touch.” Her voice was full of
sarcasm.

Joshua closed the door and locked it. He waited until she
sat down on the couch before he put his hands on his hips and faced her. “Lena,
tell me about these stones that everyone is looking for.”

Kane wasn’t surprised the government knew about Lena and the
stones. In a way, it was good news. If they knew about the stones, then they
probably also knew she hadn’t taken the money.

Lena stood up as if she was ready to bolt for the door.
“What do you know about them?”

“Sit down,” Joshua ordered.

She ignored him.

“It’s okay, Lena,” Kane said, taking a seat next to her on
the couch. “Ease up, Josh.”

Joshua sat down in the chair and faced them. “You’re going
to have to tell me something if you want my help.”

Kane watched her. He didn’t say anything. This was her
decision. She looked at him and he felt her fear. He couldn’t tell if she was
afraid of Joshua putting her grandmother in danger or losing the stones, but
she was definitely afraid. “I’m not going to end up in some government lab
predicting war moves of the enemy. I’ll kill myself first and the stones are
useless without me.”

Kane’s stomach clenched and he remembered the vision of her
being zipped into a body bag. Had she killed herself in the vision to protect
the stones?

“That’s a bit melodramatic, isn’t it?” Joshua said.

“Maybe, but I mean it.”

“The government doesn’t want you or the stones. We just want
to make certain that Oscar Thorn doesn’t get them.”

“So you sent Shamus Wade. Isn’t he a ridiculous choice?”
Kane said.

“I didn’t send anyone. I didn’t even know about this until
you went missing and my superiors told me to find my brother.”

“And now that you’ve found me, Josh?”

“You tell me.”

He could sense from his brother that he would stand behind
him. He knew it, but it was nice to feel the bond they had, as if there was an
invisible thread binding them. Kane turned to Lena. “It’s up to you, but if you
ask me, I say we have to trust Josh. We need his help.”

She sighed. “Give them to me, then.”

Kane dug into his duffle, pulled out his swim trunks and dug
the five little stones from the pocket before handing them to her. She held
them tightly in her fist and closed her eyes. When she opened her palm, the
beam of light appeared as if there was a floodlight pointing up. In the beam,
they saw the vision of Lena’s dead body followed by the happy family vision in
the future.

The beam flashed away and Lena closed her hand around the
stones.

“That’s incredible. What does it mean?” Joshua asked.

Kane felt awe from his brother and nothing awed Josh. He was
above surprise. He knew more than most people. His senses allowed him to
understand more about the past and future. The fact that he was impressed said
a lot about Lena’s gift.

“The stones never mislead or give a false vision.”

“Clearly one of those two futures is not true.”

“That’s why we need to see my grandmother. She’s the only
person who may know what it means. I sent her away so Oscar wouldn’t find her
and use her as leverage. If we go see her, she’ll be in danger.”

Joshua turned to him. “You want me to babysit an old woman?”

Kane smiled.

He turned back to Lena. “What does my brother have to do
with any of this? You just met. Though it’s obvious something is going on. He never
gets involved with a fugitive. How do I know you didn’t show him some made-up
vision so you could manipulate him into helping you?”

Anger flared in Kane’s gut. “I triggered the vision the
first time.”

Utter shock not only resonated against Kane’s senses, but it
also registered on his brother’s face. “You did? The file said only a woman
with the mark of Adeline can trigger the stones.”

“That’s true,” Lena said. “Another question for Gran.”

He was silent for a long time. “You could be a very good
liar.”

“I’m not lying.”

Joshua’s eyes narrowed. “Prove it.”

“How?” Lena asked.

“No,” Kane said.

Joshua said, “You want my help, I want access to her mind. I
want to know she’s not lying.”

“She’s not. You’re not probing her mind.”

Joshua cocked his head to one side. They knew enough about
each other for him to know Kane would not be swayed. “Then you do it.”

The air thickened. Kane thought the room had become smaller.
“I don’t do that.”

“But you can.”

“It’s not right.”

“Only if she resists.”

Kane got up. His brother’s suggestions infuriated him. He
would not harm Lena. He would never do that to anyone. She touched his arm.

He looked down into her doe eyes.

“It’s okay, Kane. I will let you in. You said it wouldn’t
hurt me if I was willing.”

His cock pressed against his zipper. He had no idea why the
idea of being in Lena’s head aroused him, but it definitely did. “Are you sure?
It’s very…intimate.”

“I’m sure.”

“More intimate than sex, Lena.”

“Are you trying to talk me out of this?”

He dug his hands in his pockets. “Maybe.”

Joshua cleared his throat. “That’s my condition. Oh and I
hold the stones while I’m granny-sitting. If you get caught, it’s better if the
stones and Lena are not in the same place.”

Kane narrowed his eyes at his brother. “We are going in the
bedroom and you are staying out here.”

A bright smile lit his handsome face. “I wouldn’t think of
intruding. Once you know everything that’s going on in her pretty head, I’ll be
on board or we’ll both be out. Of that, you have my word, little brother.”

He reached his hand down and she put her small one in it.
She trusted him. God, that was a turn-on too. They walked into the bedroom. She
sat on the bed and waited for him. Kane paced back and forth. His palms were
sweating.

“Kane?”

He stopped and turned to see her watching him with wide
eyes. He laughed. “I’m a little nervous.”

She patted the bed next to her, and he sat down. “Are you
afraid of what you’ll find in my mind? Do you think I’m lying to you?”