Shadow's Pleasure: The Shadow Warder Series, Book Two (A Paranormal/Urban Fantasy Romance Series) (4 page)

He studied her face for a moment before he responded. “Shield need work?” he asked, as if it was no big deal.

Sorcha wasn’t fooled. “It won’t be an issue,” she said, meeting his intelligent hazel eyes. “My weakness is anchored in this Sanctuary. Once I leave, I’ll need no more than an hour before my shield is impenetrable.”

“If you’re playing me on this, you could get us both killed. You wouldn’t lie to me, would you, Sorcha?”

The sound of her name on his lips sent a hot shiver down Sorcha’s spine. She hadn’t thought of a male as anything other than the opposite gender in years, not in the time she’d been back at the Sanctuary, at least. Just her luck, that the first time she got a warm tingle again it was for a Warder, and in pretty much the worst situation possible. Pushing aside her hormones, she answered as honestly as she could. “I don’t know you well enough to answer that. But I’m not generally known as a liar,” she said, her words surprising a laugh out of him.

“That tells me something. If you were going to make a habit of lying to me, you would have said ‘No.’”

“Maybe I’m just very clever.” Sorcha knew she was perilously close to flirting, but she couldn’t seem to help herself.

“I have no doubt that you’re clever,” he said. “And you don’t strike me as a liar. Which is kind of funny, considering the way that meeting went. Did you know Warders can detect lies?”

“No,” Sorcha said, both intrigued and suddenly nervous. Shadows didn’t know many details about how Warders worked. Since they had no contact, there wasn’t a reason to learn more than the basics. “How?”

“Mainly through touch.” He reached for her.

Sorcha stepped away, regretting the need for physical distance for the first time in years. The Warder’s arm dropped to his side.

“That’s right. Back there, that guy said you don’t like to be touched. Sorry.”

“I have a hard time with it.” She rubbed her hand across her arm where she would have felt the heat of his skin if she hadn’t pulled back. “Can you do it without touch?”

“Not as well, but we can still sense a lie most of the time. So I know that about half of what you said in that meeting was bullshit.”

Sorcha’s heart sank. Was this just the set-up to his telling her he’d be leaving her behind? She wouldn’t let him go without her.

“It was and it wasn’t,” she said, working to keep the desperation out of her voice. “Tell me what part you think was a lie.”

“The parts about your shield being fine. And that you’re sure you can maintain it in the city. I don’t care that you lied in the meeting. But if we can find the girls, we’ll only have one chance to get to them. I need to know that you’re not going to be a liability. Will it hurt if I touch you?”

“Not exactly,” she said, the change of topic confusing her for a second.

She jolted in surprise when his warm hand closed over her arm in the exact spot she’d imagined him touching her a minute before. Heat from his callused skin flowed over her, soothing the jagged edges of her shield. It was unlike any touch she’d felt before. Since the power surge, physical contact sent shards of disruptive energy through her shield, invading her own flow of power, unsettling her. From this Warder, she felt only a living heat as warm and nourishing as summer sunshine. It continued to spread across her skin, almost like it was feeding her shield instead of disrupting it.

A part of Sorcha was so shocked she wanted to rip her arm free and retreat into her cottage. Another part wanted to move closer, to invite him to touch her with the other hand to see if further contact would spread more of his delicious heat. And then the dominant part of her brain reminded her she needed this Warder to get her away from the Sanctuary. He was touching her to read her lies. She needed to focus, not get lost in the feel of his skin on hers.

“I’m okay,” she said. “Ask what you need to.”

“Can you repair your shield when we leave here?”

“Yes. The original fault in my shield was caused by a surge in my powers ten years ago. I should have been able to repair it within a few weeks. The reason I couldn’t is centered here, in this Sanctuary. Once we leave, it won’t take me long to get to full strength. I swear it.”

Taking a risk, Sorcha met the Warder’s eyes. Warm hazel swirled with greens and golds. They shouldn’t have been so piercing. It felt as if he read every nuance of her soul. If he did, then he knew she was telling the truth.

“Can you really find the missing girls better than any other Shadow? Even through the spell craft blocking them?”

“Yes. The spell craft will make it more difficult, but no one has a better chance than me. We will bring them home, Kiernan.”

He dropped her arm abruptly when she said his name. Shaking his hand as if to flick off drops of water, he stepped back. Sorcha wondered if he’d felt the same heat she had.

“All right,” he said. “We’re good. But we do need to go over some stuff before we leave. How much time do you need?”

“An hour or two,” Sorcha said. “Can you meet me back here?”

“Sure.”

He stood by the entrance, watching her with a bemused smile as she opened the door and slipped inside. Closing it behind her, Sorcha leaned her forehead against the cool wood, not sure she understood what had just happened. She’d passed his test. That much she knew. The rest—his touch, the heat—was a mystery. One she’d worry about later when she was safely away from the Sanctuary.

Kiernan waited as Sorcha closed the door to her rustic cottage behind her. She didn’t fit her home. Tall and curvy, with that striking combination of flaming red hair and green eyes, Sorcha brought to mind a warrior princess. The cottage, with its log walls and thatched roof, belonged to a woodland fairy. Another mystery. Like the odd sensation he’d felt when he’d held her arm.

At their contact, his palm had warmed. Electric heat had spread from her skin to his, flowing over his hand and up his arm. Over the years, he’d used touch to sense lies hundreds of times. What happened with Sorcha was new. He’d never touched a Shadow. It could be as simple as that. It didn’t matter. The purpose of the test had been to determine if she’d be a liability. Kiernan wasn’t entirely convinced Sorcha would be an asset, but he believed she thought she could do the job. For now, that would have to be enough.

Heading a few paces away, he stopped in the shade of a tall tree and pulled out his phone. Leaning against the tree’s thick trunk, Kiernan made himself comfortable. Time to make a call and see what they’d be walking into when they returned to the city.

In the distance across the field, Conner walked hand in hand with Hannah. The Shadow’s sunset hair flamed in the light, more red-gold than the deep ruby of Sorcha’s. Conner walked close beside Hannah, scanning the open field around them, alert to any threat. He was going to smother the girl if he didn’t watch it. After losing his first child, he’d hover over Hannah and their baby until he was sure they were both safe. Given the world they lived in, safety was hard to come by. Even hidden away in this Sanctuary.

Fortunately, Hannah seemed like a patient woman. It didn’t hurt that she was as head over heels for Conner as he was for her. When they disappeared into the woods surrounding the field, Kiernan flipped open his phone. The burner only had a few numbers programmed in it. He scrolled to the first and dialed. A terse female voice answered.

“What do you want?” Alexa asked, not bothering to hide her irritation. Kiernan didn’t care. He needed information, and Alexa was a little afraid of him. She’d talk. It was supposed to be the other way around. As his handler, Alexa should be the one with authority in their relationship, but she’d never been very good at her job. Her Warders barely tolerated her. Until the recent problems with Hannah, Kiernan hadn’t paid her much attention.

“Aren’t you cheerful, as always,” he said, poking at her. Alexa took herself too seriously, making her the perfect target to tease.

“Fuck you, Kiernan. Where are you? Are you with Conner?”

“I have no idea where Conner is,” Kiernan lied smoothly. As far as Alexa was concerned, Kiernan hadn’t laid eyes on Conner since the last time she’d seen them together.

“Bullshit. I’m sure you know exactly where he is. Did he get the girl?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. I haven't seen Conner in a while, but I’m sure he’s fine, wherever he is. How are things back there?”

“Fine. Are you planning to come back to work anytime soon? With Conner AWOL, and you on an unscheduled retreat, I’m two soldiers short.”

“I was planning to be back on patrol tomorrow night.”

“Good.”

Silence fell. Kiernan waited. If Alexa was done with him, she would have hung up already. He didn’t have any more to say. His purpose in calling had simply been to take Alexa’s temperature. She wasn’t normally helpful, but she’d played a small part in helping Hannah escape the hidden lab beneath the Warder Citadel. Kiernan wouldn’t have guessed in a million years that Alexa would risk Michael’s displeasure by helping Hannah escape. The fact that she’d helped meant that either Alexa had gone crazy or she might be an ally. An unreliable, annoying ally, but an ally nonetheless.

Proving once again that she might be worth something, Alexa said, “If you talk to Conner, tell him I’m fairly sure a Sicarius has been sent out after him.”

“By you, or by Michael?” Kiernan asked.

“Not by me. I haven’t seen enough evidence to send a Sicarius after Conner. All I know is that he was ranting about a missing Shadow and now he’s disappeared for a few days. Conner’s behavior isn’t remotely acceptable, but it doesn’t deserve a death sentence. Not yet, anyway.”

“Which Sicarius?” Kiernan asked. He wasn’t friendly with most of the Sicari, but he might recognize the name. Elite soldiers who were sent after rogue Warders, the Sicari tended to keep to themselves. The only one Kiernan knew well was Gabriel Wright, and he’d dropped off the map months before.

“I don’t know. I haven’t been able to find out.” Another long pause. “Whoever it is, they’ll have your name as one of Conner’s known associates.”

“Am I listed as a target?”

“Not as far as I know. But I’d keep your eyes open.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Kiernan said, wondering how far Alexa had slid from the social-climbing bureaucrat she’d been since she’d left the field. Once, Alexa had been an excellent soldier. Smart. Quick. Kiernan had thought her fearless until she’d traded her honor for the safety of a desk. Had he underestimated her? It was possible. Or she could be playing him. While Warders had a good system for lie detection, it didn’t work over the phone. He’d have to take the risk.

“Get back to work,” Alexa said and, with a beep of the phone, disconnected the call.

Kiernan pressed the buttons to get back to the contact list on his phone. One call down, one more to go. Then he’d find something to do with himself while he gave Sorcha a little more time alone. He scrolled to the third name on the list. If they were going to get in and out of Charlotte without anyone figuring out what they were up to, or who Sorcha really was, they’d need a little help. At the third ring, a deep, gravelly voice answered.

“Yeah?”

“Madoc. It’s Kiernan.”

“New phone?”

“Yeah. Burner.”

“You in trouble?” Madoc asked.

“No more than usual. But I need a favor. You going to be in your shop tomorrow?”

“I’ll be around for the next few days. What do you need?”

“Ink. Some sigils. Not permanent.”

“For you?” Madoc’s normally reserved voice betrayed a hint of curiosity.

“No. A friend. Camouflage,” Kiernan said.

“Human?”

“No. I’ll tell you more when we get there.” Kiernan didn’t want to say more than he had to over the phone. Madoc was security-conscious, but Kiernan’s simple burner phone didn’t have anything on it to prevent eavesdroppers. Its only benefit was that no one had the number. With each call he made, however, the risk of exposure grew. Now that he thought of it— “I could use some new tech. A phone, to start,” Kiernan said.

“It’ll cost.”

“Unless you stopped taking cash, I’m good.”

“Cash always works. Call when you’re on your way. I’ll be ready.” With a short beep, Madoc disconnected. Kiernan closed the phone and shoved it in his pocket.

They hadn’t had much time before they’d left town, but he and Conner had made as many preparations as they could. Neither of them had many belongings to pack. Kiernan, after years of fending for himself as a child, had a healthy distrust of relying on anyone but himself for security. He’d kept some of his pay in Warder-controlled banks. The rest he’d spread around among human banks, various investments, and stashes of cash all over the U.S. If someone wanted to get their hands on his money, they’d have to be very thorough.

Kiernan knew what it was to be hungry. He’d watched his mother and sisters die of a fever when he was seven. As the man of their tiny house, he’d done his best to take care of them, but he’d been able to do little more than steal pennies and bits of food. Not enough to pay a doctor. He’d never know if medical help could have saved them. It wouldn’t have hurt. Neither would have a warm place to live or full stomachs. Hungry, cold, and barely scraping by, it had been a miracle he hadn’t died with them. At least it had seemed so at the time. Kiernan had learned later that, thanks to his Warder father, he wasn’t human enough to die of a fever.