Siren's Call (A Rainshadow Novel) (22 page)

“Are you all right?” Rafe asked.

“Yes.” Her voice was so thin it almost disappeared. “I’m okay. Just a little tired.” Sleep pulled at her senses. She could barely keep her eyes open. “Those two men—”

“Unconscious. With luck I’ll be able to drag them both back through the fence before something else arrives to eat them. But first I need to get you out of here.”

He picked her up in his arms. Lorelei transferred adroitly to his shoulder and fluffed up.

“Told you, I’m okay,” Ella mumbled. “I can walk. Just need to nap a bit first.”

“You need rest, all right,” Rafe agreed. “But not here.”

She tried to call up a little psi to push back against the lethargy that threatened to overwhelm her, but she had nothing left. Rafe’s arms were warm and tight around her.

When he carried her past the body of the dead creature,
a tide of grief swept through her. Sensing her sadness, Lorelei hunkered close and made comforting noises.

“That poor beast,” Ella whispered. “It was never intended for this time and place. They had no right to do that to a helpless animal.”

“Who had no right?” Rafe asked.

“The Aliens.”

“It’s just a dinosaur, Ella.”

“They’re dying, Rafe,” she whispered. “All of them, I think. I can hear it in their music.”

“Maybe they were bioengineered to die off if things did not work out as the Aliens planned.”

“They had no right to run their experiments on helpless animals.”

She did not realize that she was crying until she discovered that the front of Rafe’s shirt was damp with her tears.

•   •   •

He had planned to take Ella through the psi-fence and leave her in a safe place some distance from where the ambush had taken place. He assumed the other two Vortex men would be waiting for their companions.

But when he emerged from the Preserve with Ella in his arms, he discovered that one of the vehicles was gone.

“The other two probably figured we all got eaten,” he said to Lorelei.

With some effort and a bit of awkward maneuvering, he managed to get Ella curled up on the rear seat of the SUV. When he was satisfied that she was reasonably
comfortable, he opened the door on the driver’s side and angled himself behind the wheel. With one foot braced on the ground and his gun in his hand, he took out his phone.

Slade answered on the first ring.

“I could use a little help,” Rafe said.

Slade ended the call, clipped the phone to his belt, and looked at Rafe. “My officers found the missing vehicle that was used in the ambush. It was abandoned near the marina. Looks like the fools stole a boat.”

“Idiots.” Rafe shook his head. “They don’t know the currents around Rainshadow.”

“Even experienced fishermen who have lived on the island all their lives try to avoid taking a boat out at night. I doubt the two we’re looking for will get far. Probably wind up on the rocks. The bodies might wash ashore in the next day or so.”

“We’ll get some answers from the two we pulled out of the Preserve tonight,” Rafe said.

“Maybe. But their ID looks solid.”

“Bail bond agents working for a Crystal City bond outfit?” Rafe shook his head in disgust. “Give me a break.
What are they going to say? That I was a case of mistaken identity? They were after someone else?”

“Why not? It’s as good a story as any other.”

“Not a lot of bounty hunters are armed with Alien tech,” Rafe said.

They were in Slade’s office. It was nearly two o’clock in the morning. Ella was fast asleep, curled up on a bench in the outer office. One of Slade’s officers, a woman named Myrna Reed, was keeping an eye on her.

The unconscious men were locked up in one of the police station’s two small cells. The bell weapon and the headphones that the agents had worn earlier were currently sitting on Slade’s desk.

Rafe knew that taking the chief’s job on Rainshadow had not been anywhere on Slade’s agenda back in the days when he had been with the Bureau. The world of a small-town police chief held little appeal for a man who was used to chasing serious bad guys in the Underworld. But things had happened and Slade had been forced to reinvent his life. The surprise was that he looked thoroughly at home here in his new office.

“Any idea why Vortex wants you so badly?” Slade asked. “Assuming whoever is behind this really is Vortex?”

“Not entirely sure yet.” Rafe looked at the gray stone in his ring. “But Ella thinks it’s connected to what happened to me three months ago. I’m strongly inclined to agree with her.”

“You’re saying it goes back to when you got psi-burned.”

“I think so, yes.”

Slade leaned back in his chair and went quiet for a time.

“We need some help with this one,” Rafe said finally. “Okay if I call Joe Harding? This case started in Crystal City and it involves Alien tech. Joe has resources that aren’t available to either of us.”

Slade thought about it. “You’re right. Call Harding.”

There was a little more silence.

“I got burned once,” Slade said eventually.

“I heard about that.” Rafe paused. “Obviously you survived.”

“There was a time when I wasn’t sure I would. That was followed by an even worse time when I figured that I would survive but without my talent.”

Rafe hesitated, not sure if he wanted to push the subject. “Did anything change afterward?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“I mean, besides getting this cushy job here on Rainshadow.”

“Besides that.”

“Got to say you look fairly normal,” Rafe ventured.

Slade’s mouth kicked up at the corner. “Appearances can be deceiving.”

“You’re married, holding down a job, and expecting a baby. That’s pretty much the working definition of normal.”

“Yep, life is good. But between you and me, my talent changed after the burn.”

“I suppose it would be amazing if it hadn’t been affected in some way.” Rafe felt as if he were walking on eggshells. Conversations like this were complicated.

“Thought I was going crazy for a while. That’s a common side effect of a burn, I’m told.”

“I’ve heard that.”

“Figured I’d lose my talent entirely,” Slade said. “But in the end that’s not what happened.”

“What did happen, if you don’t mind my asking?”

“The burn changed my talent. It didn’t obliterate it.”

“Huh. Ella says she thinks something like that may be happening to me.”

“My advice? Pay attention to Ella.”

“That’s pretty much what I did tonight,” Rafe said.

“And you’re both still alive. That would seem to indicate Ella’s right.”

“Good point.”

Slade looked at the bell and the headphones. “You’ll probably want to lock those up in that fancy tech vault you’ve got at the jobsite. I sure as hell don’t have any safe place to store artifacts.”

“I’ve been thinking about that damn bell and those headphones,” Rafe said.

“What about them?”

“The headphones are human engineering. Whoever made one set could have made several sets—assuming he had the right equipment and a good lab.”

“So?”

“The bell, on the other hand, is definitely Alien tech and very exotic tech, at that.”

“No question about it,” Slade said. “Hard to miss the Alien vibe and the power in the thing.”

“A unique item. Yet it looks identical to the bell weapon that Vortex used on Ella and me in Crystal City. I find it hard to believe that Vortex just happened to have two such
weapons. Alien devices that can be rezzed by humans are damned rare to start with. Something as sophisticated as that bell must be even harder to come by.”

“Where are you going with this?” Slade asked.

“It’s conceivable, just barely, that Vortex discovered a stash of identical bell weapons, but it occurs to me that there is another possibility.”

“Which is?”

“They stole it.”

“From?”

“The Coppersmith vault out at the jobsite. Pretty sure this is the same bell and the same two sets of headphones that I brought back from Crystal City.”

Slade whistled softly. “If that stuff came out of your vault, it would seem to indicate that those four Vortex guys had a little inside help.”

“Yes,” Rafe said. “That is exactly what it indicates.” He pushed himself up out of his chair. “Only one way to find out.”

Half an hour later, Rafe stood in the doorway of the tech vault. Arthur Gill, Slade, and two of Slade’s officers were grouped around him. The lab techs had all been awakened and now formed a circle behind them. There was a very anxious vibe in the small crowd.

Everyone looked at the empty glass-and-steel lockbox on the shelf.

A murmur of shock and disbelief went through the assembled staff.

“You’re right, Mr. Coppersmith.” Dr. Hayashi shook his head. “The items are gone.” He glanced at the bell and the headphones that Rafe held. “I swear, all of those artifacts were in that box yesterday afternoon when we ran the daily inventory check.”

“I can vouch for that,” Susan Bowen said very firmly.

“I believe you both,” Rafe said. “Obviously someone
removed the artifacts after the last inventory check—someone with access to the lab and the vault.”

Gill nodded, his dour face sinking deeper into gloom. “So, we’re talking about an inside job.”

“Looks like it,” Rafe said. “Chief Attridge has requested permission to conduct a search of the lab and the lockers of all personnel who have entered the facility within the past forty-eight hours.”

Gill looked first surprised and then offended.

“No offense to the chief,” he said, “but when it comes to Coppersmith property, we usually handle our own problems.”

“The search I want to conduct is in connection with the murder of the DND operative who was shot to death at the lake,” Slade said.

“That puts it into Chief Attridge’s jurisdiction,” Rafe said. “He’s asking politely, but to be clear, he doesn’t have to ask at all. This is his island.”

Susan Bowen glanced at the relics in Rafe’s hands. “You really think that young man’s death is linked to those artifacts?”

It was Slade who responded. “We don’t know yet,” he said. “I can get a warrant from a judge in Thursday Harbor if you insist on going through the formalities.”

“No, that won’t be necessary,” Gill said. “If Mr. Coppersmith authorizes the search, I’m okay with it.”

•   •   •

They found the mag-rez gun less than twenty minutes later when they opened one of the personnel lockers.

“Damn,” Gill said quietly. “You’re thinking that’s the weapon that was used to kill Maitland, aren’t you?”

“Can’t say for sure yet,” Slade said. “But it shouldn’t be too difficult to find out.”

Rafe looked at Angela Price. “It’s your locker, Angela,” he said gently. “Got anything to say to us?”

Angela stared at the weapon. Tears trickled down her cheeks.

Exuberant chortling brought Ella out of a dream of wistful, faded music that echoed from an ancient past. It was the music of another species but it was, nevertheless, music. Her senses responded to it.

More chortling ensued. She opened her eyes. Lorelei was on the pillow. She was covered in powdered sugar. So was the pillowcase.

Ella groaned and pushed herself up to a sitting position. She was relieved to see that she was back in her room at the lodge. Everything appeared surprisingly normal, but when she looked down she noticed that she was wearing the cheap nightgown she had picked up in Thursday Harbor. She was pretty sure she hadn’t undressed herself. Her last clear memory was of being carried out of the Preserve in Rafe’s arms.

She looked at Lorelei. “I take it you didn’t get the memo about eating doughnuts in bed.”

Lorelei gave a small shake. Powdered sugar went flying. A light dusting of the stuff hit Ella in the face. She sneezed.

There was a perfunctory knock on the door. It opened before Ella could respond. Rafe walked into the room. He had a small white paper sack in one hand and a large cup of coffee in the other.

Lorelei chortled at the sight of the paper sack.

Ella yelped and grabbed the covers, instinctively pulling the sheet up to her throat.

“Sorry,” Rafe said. “Didn’t mean to startle you.” He put the coffee and the paper sack on the table beside the bed. He took another look at Ella, frowning a little. “Did someone already bring you some fresh doughnuts?”

“All I got was some leftover powdered sugar. No doughnut was involved.”

Rafe sat down on the side of the bed, leaned over, and swiped his finger lightly across her cheek. He smiled at the sight of the white smudge. Then he surveyed her with an assessing eye.

“You look good,” he said. “Almost normal. How are you feeling?”

Ella managed to recover from the initial shock of having a man walk casually into her bedroom. But now she was not certain how to react. Okay, so she and Rafe had slept together one time. In her opinion that did not give a man the right to amble in and out of her bedroom without an
invitation. On the other hand, the two of them had barely survived a number of near-disastrous incidents together. That sort of thing had a bonding effect.

She decided to punt. She picked up the cup, peeled off the lid, and inhaled appreciatively.

“Thanks for the coffee,” she said. “Just what I need.” She took a cautious sip.

“You need to eat a doughnut, too.” Rafe opened the sack, removed one, and handed it to her. “Carbs and caffeine—two of the basic food groups. Sorry, I had to go with chocolate icing. The kitchen was out of powdered sugar.”

“Chocolate works.” She took a bite and paused in mid-munch. She looked at Lorelei. “Should I ask why there were no powdered-sugar doughnuts left this morning?”

“Bob, the cook, says they all disappeared shortly after he set them out on a rack to cool. Turned his back for just a few minutes, he said. When he came back to get the doughnuts, the tray was empty.”

“Lorelei couldn’t possibly have eaten an entire tray of doughnuts.”

Rafe looked at Lorelei. “There is some suspicion that she may have been the ringleader of a gang of doughnut thieves.”

Lorelei, aware that she was the center of attention, bounced a little and blinked her blues a couple of times.

“Nonsense.” Ella popped the last of the doughnut into her mouth. “I’m sure Lorelei is innocent. More likely some hungry employees got to the doughnuts.”

“Feel free to entertain that theory, but I’ll warn you it is not the one that Bob and his staff are going with.”

“Forget the doughnuts,” Ella said. “Tell me what happened after I passed out last night.”

“I hauled you out of the Preserve. One of the Vortex vehicles was gone. Slade and I think the two guys who were left on the road heard the roaring of the dinosaur inside the Preserve and figured their pals had come to an unfortunate end. Looks like they stole a boat from the marina.”

“But everyone says that navigation is extremely tricky around the island, especially after dark.”

“True. Slade doesn’t think they’ll make it. But meanwhile, I made the stunning deduction that there probably weren’t two identical Alien bells floating around. Turned out I was right. The bell relic that those Vortex operatives used on us came from the Coppersmith vault here on the island.”

Ella exhaled slowly, thinking. “So, they had inside help to get the relics and the earphones.”

“Yeah. But here’s where it gets even more interesting. Slade conducted a search this morning. He found a mag-rez in Angela Price’s locker. He’s going to have some tests run but he’s pretty sure it’s the same gun that was used to kill the DND guy, Kenneth Maitland.”

“Angela shot him? Good heavens, why?”

“Motive is still unclear and Angela is denying everything. But she’s now sitting in the Shadow Bay jail along with the two Vortex guys.”

“What are the Vortex agents saying?” Ella asked.

“They woke up this morning but they’re pretty traumatized from the confrontation with the dinosaur. Their memories of the experience in the Preserve are . . . disturbed, to put it mildly. All they know is that a beast was closing in on them when it suddenly collapsed and died. Two interesting things, though. The first is that both men have the Vortex tats.”

“No surprise there.”

“No, but this bunch was carrying ID—probably fake, but interesting nevertheless. They claim to be bail bond agents.”

“Bounty hunters?” Ella stared at him. “Are you joking?”

“Nope. Their ID says they work for a company called Crystal City Bail Bonds. Slade called the number and got hold of a guy who claims to be their boss. He says it’s all a horrible case of mistaken identity. He sent them out after some guy named Copperfield, not Coppersmith.”

“That’s ridiculous.”

“Slade and I agree with you. Slade pointed out that this is clearly an FBPI case. He has a point. He contacted Joe Harding.”

Ella wrinkled her nose. “I hate to think of Harding getting the credit for closing another big case, but I suppose there’s no one else to call.”

“No, this is way too big for Coppersmith Security or Arcane or the Guild. We’re talking some serious Alien tech and a very well-organized criminal mob.”

“Okay, okay. So we turn it over to the Bureau.” Ella took a breath. “About last night—”

Rafe winced. “Really? You want to go there again?”

“I’m serious. Something weird occurred. I may have been the one doing the singing but I think I had a little help from the chorus.”

“You mean Lorelei? Well, she does seem to have bonded with you. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that she was able to give you a little boost.”

“Not just Lorelei.” Ella wrapped her arms around her knees. “I felt you there, as well.”

“I was there.”

“I mean, I felt like I was using some of your talent to tap in to the energy inside the Preserve.”

Rafe shrugged. “Maybe that’s exactly what happened. Rainshadow is a paranormal nexus. There’s a lot of power in the vicinity. Strong tides, underwater volcanos, geothermal activity—not to mention the forces unleashed centuries ago by the Aliens when they started experimenting with the local flora and fauna.”

“Yes, I know, but I’ve never heard of anyone being able to channel that kind of raw power.”

“There’s a lot we don’t know about para-physics. I’m guessing that most people wouldn’t be strong enough to handle that sort of energy. But you’re not most people.”

She looked at him and then she contemplated the gray quartz ring on his hand. “If that’s what happened—if I really did pull nexus power last night—I didn’t do it alone.”

“I’m good with being your backup singer. I think Lorelei is okay with that job, too.”

“I vote we don’t tell anyone exactly what we believe happened last night.”

Rafe smiled slowly. “It’ll be a secret among the three of us. Right, Lorelei?”

Lorelei, perched at the foot of the bed, chortled enthusiastically, and waved her veil.

“Yep, Lorelei’s on board with the secret thing,” Rafe said. He paused. “I’ve been thinking about what you said last night when I carried you out of the Preserve. You told me that you could hear something in the dino’s music that made you think it would have died soon and that maybe the others will, too.”

“Yes. It’s hard to explain and I can’t be positive that I interpreted the music correctly, but it was similar to the energy I picked up when I chased off that dinosaur in Wonderland. My intuition tells me that what I heard were the first wavelengths that indicate the onset of death.” She shuddered. “It was as if I were hearing the music of a dying species, not just one particular individual. Something is seriously wrong with the dino DNA.”

“Like I said last night, maybe the Aliens engineered their experiments to self-destruct just in case they got loose from Wonderland.”

“Maybe.”

“If that’s true, it will definitely simplify exploration of Wonderland,” Rafe said.

“And once again we humans hang on to our place at the top of the food chain.”

“Second place on the food chain is not a good place to be,” Rafe said. He looked at the paper sack on the bedside table. “Speaking of food, do you want the last doughnut?”

“No, thanks,” Ella said. “What I really want now is a
shower and then a more protein-based breakfast. Would you please hand me my robe?”

Rafe got up, took the robe down off the wall hook, and handed it to Ella.

“Turn around,” Ella ordered.

Obediently, he gave her his back.

She got out of bed and pulled the robe around herself. “Who undressed me last night?”

“Who do you think undressed you?”

“It was you, wasn’t it?”

“Figured you’d rather have me do it than some stranger. After all, you and I bonded with all that dino singing, remember?”

“Never mind.”

She hurried into the bathroom.

She had just turned on the shower and was waiting for the water to warm to a suitable temperature when she heard Rafe’s voice rising in outrage in the other room.

“Hey, what the hell happened to the last doughnut?”

Ella was pretty sure she heard a muffled chortle. It sounded like it came from under the bed.