A Shadow's Embrace (8 page)

So perhaps his ability to read her easily was something different, more primal. His blood heated at the possibility. Maybe she was different around him, trusted him.
 

Anticipation spurred him forward. He maneuvered the complicated tapestry of thought chests with careful appreciation, pausing occasionally to brush his mind across particularly darkened areas. For some reason he didn’t like the idea of her running through those sectors without his presence.
 

Tucked in the farthest recesses of her mind was her epicenter. The area hummed with raw energy flowing freely as she worked diligently. His mind’s eye focused on a mental apparition of her. Long, golden waves drifted in a soft breeze of power. Her gaze narrowed when she turned to regard him.
 

“Don’t tell me. You were absent the day they handed out patience.”
 

“Probably so.”
 

He crossed his arms and studied her carefully. Even on this mental plane of existence, exhaustion was evident in darkened circles beneath her eyes. Crimson speckled her upper lip, beneath her nose.
 

“Nose bleed?”
 

“Oh. I guess so.”  Her eyes widened slightly as she swiped her face.  “How long have I been gone?”
 

“An hour and fifteen minutes last time I checked.” He approached her cautiously when she turned to continue working. “Any luck?”
 

“I found him,” she mumbled, her hands flying into patterns as though she was flinging unseen things out of her way. “They have him.”
 

Rider. Of course she’d look for him. He inhaled as much of her agitation as he could without being obvious. “You amaze me. You’re exhausted, but you go off and do what two teams couldn’t and find your missing teammate.”
 

“Rider is like a brother.” She tapped on something he couldn’t see. “He’s there.”
 

The emphatic rise in pitch keyed him into the importance of her discovery. She turned, her gorgeous eyes blazing with triumph, despite the grim lines around her lips. “Focus harder on the image, babe. I can’t see what you’re seeing easily.”
 

“Oh, right.” She chewed her lower lip. “I hope you realize we will have words about you being here, rooting around in my brain. Don’t think I didn’t feel you touching things.”
 

“I’d be disappointed if we didn’t have words.” He cupped her face and leaned in until his lips hovered near hers. “I like our little chats, and I happen to really like touching your things.”
 

Her gaze narrowed. “You’re thinking about kissing me, aren’t you?”
 

“I’m thinking of doing a hell of a lot more than kissing you.”
 

She licked her lower lip, and her eyelids fluttered shut. All Dagan’s blood surged to his dick. She tugged on his shirt and rose up on her toes. Pleasure spiraled through him when she swept her lips across his. A woman had never been the aggressor with him.
 

 Hunger harried her tongue as it delved into his mouth, laying claim to his. His hands moved along her body, pausing to cup her breasts. She moaned softly when he flicked the hardened nubs with his thumbs. Need threaded between them, weaving a complicated tapestry of desperation he could taste in her kiss, feel in the way she squeezed and rubbed along his body.
 

Jesus, he wanted this woman. One-night stands had been his modus operandi for years. Nameless bodies sated his needs temporarily and didn’t add the complication of explanations into the mix. His abilities, his team, his very existence were things he couldn’t explain to most people, but Devyn wasn’t most people, and that fact sobered him into severing the kiss.
 

As though sensing his thoughts, she stepped back a couple of steps and looked away briefly. “Sorry, not sure what came over me. I’m not usually that forward.”
 

“You won’t hear any complaints from me. I just don’t want to start something I can’t finish.” He dragged her forward, wrapping his arm around her waist until the heat of her body pressed against his aching dick. He kissed along her neck and nibbled on her earlobe until she shivered within his embrace. Pleased as fuck with her reaction, he groaned. “You have no idea how badly I want to bury myself in you right now, Devyn. But we need to focus.”
 

“You’re right. Business before pleasure.”
 

“Right.” He kissed her forehead and forced his focus on the mission. “Tell me about Rider.”
 

She turned and focused on something he couldn’t see at first. Delving deeper into her thoughts, he honed in on the visual she studied.
 

A man hung from restraints in the center of a room. His head drooping, moisture dribbling from his long dark hair. A light blinked from a thick collar around his neck. Fuck. Not good.
 

Dagan’s neck burned as he observed the footage. It’d been years since he’d been manacled, psychically restrained. He wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
 

Red, circular wounds ran from his shoulders to his waistband in random patterns. Bloody cuts streaked across his torso. Even though Dagan couldn’t see Rider’s back, he suspected the same would appear there.
 

Devyn’s mind echoed the helplessness of the situation. Her pain ate away what little neutrality Dagan had maintained. He may not know Rider, but the man was important to her. Protectiveness rose within Dagan. He severed the link between her and the feed and drew her closer, until her ragged breaths fell against his throat. A lump formed in his throat. He wanted to take away the trembling fear wracking her body.
 

Dagan’s shift to reality after delving into someone’s thoughts was typically abrupt, a swift strike that severed any connectivity he’d formed. Those whose minds he inhabited, though, were typically the enemy.
 

This moment with Devyn had been different. He clung to the last remnants of the meld as he held her against him. Emotion rose within him. Her pain resonated within him, a dull ache in his chest. The love and care she had for her teammate echoed in him.
 

He’d been torn up when they’d lost Nevada and Sage. He couldn’t let her go through that alone. “We’ll get him back.”
 

Moisture dampened her cheeks when she looked up at him. “They have him, and it’s my fault.”
 

“No.” He hugged her closer, wishing the dark pangs of guilt to disperse, even though he knew it wouldn’t be that simple. How many times had he blamed himself for Sage and Nevada?  He should’ve been able to sense their despair, their desperation to escape. If he had, maybe they’d still be alive. “If he’s anything like me and the other Shadow Elites, he knew the risk when he got involved with Indigo Order. If he’s anything like Dare, he’d do anything to keep you safe.”
 

She blinked, tears trailed down her cheeks. “He’s always been fiercely protective, even when we were still at the facility. He and Dare always took my punishments even when I argued. They’re the only reasons General Conver and Doctor Lang never discovered my true ability. They had them convinced I was a level three empath.”
 

“We’ll get him back. Kaeden’s brought the SEO team here. We’ll convene with them, and you can read us in on what started all this and Rider’s status. Together we’ll figure it out.” He cupped her face and captured her gaze. “Believe me, we’ll get him back.”
 

She nodded. “I trust you, Dagan.”
 

The unabashed confession stoked the possessiveness he’d experienced earlier. He wouldn’t let her down. “You handed my intrusion well. Most would’ve fought harder.”
 

She bristled slightly in his embrace. “It felt awkward. I sensed you touching, brushing across things but you didn’t intrude or force your way around.”
 

“What’d my touch feel like?” His voice lowered as he ran his finger along her cheek.
 

“Warm velvet. Soft. Safe.”
 

“I like knowing that.” Her lips were moist, plump temptation he couldn’t ignore. He ran his hand behind her neck and closed the distance between them. “I need another taste of you.”
 

Devyn’s eyes widened slightly before closing. “What?”
 

“I want to taste you.” He flicked his tongue along the seam of her mouth until a soft moan escaped her. He sucked her lower lip as she wrapped her hands around him and groaned.
 

Her tongue sought his. The kiss deepened. Need rose within his blood, firing through his veins until the primal need to have her overwhelmed him.
 

Fuck the bad timing. He needed his focus on keeping her safe. Severing the contact, he looked down at her swollen lips and groaned. “Jesus, I want you so bad I swear you’re in my blood, but this can’t happen right now.”
 

She cleared her throat and shifted until she was away from him. “Right. Distractions aren’t a
 

good idea.”
 

The safe house was on the edge of town nearest one of the many large freeways encircling Normal. It seemed as though the entirety of the SEO had shown up. Their presence unnerved her, the way they studied her every move with expressionless faces and stances that, without words, promised severe consequences for anyone who dared fuck with them.
 

Dare and Rider could learn a thing or two about intimidation from them. She’d wanted to remain close to Dagan, but he’d moved away from her the moment they entered the small room, as if establishing physical distance to sever the tentative attraction growing between them.
 

The kiss had been a mistake—a rash and naïve impulse she’d no business fulfilling. Hopefully they’d move past the tension Devyn sensed and get back to what mattered. Finding Rider.
 

“Ace, you’re a man after my geek soul. This system is awesome.”
 

“I can’t take all the credit.” The short, wiry man smirked and sat beside her. “We spoke with your girl, and she said you were particular. I’ve gotta say I’m impressed. Some of this software you’re running is slick. I’m thinking about installing it on the SEO systems.”
 

“Well, you’ll see it in action soon enough.”
 

The machine purred awake. Ignoring the majority of the room’s intimidating inhabitants, she focused on Ace.
 

“What typically goes down when I go in is that I find the area of interest and project the data on the multiple monitors. Cadence usually follows and searches those data streams for any audio clues.”
 

“She’s an audiopath. Cool.” Ace grabbed a keyboard. “I can trace your location, make sure no one notices your presence.”
 

A couple weeks ago she would’ve said it wasn’t possible for someone to track her, but clearly she’d overlooked something the last time she’d been there. Otherwise Conver wouldn’t be nipping at her heels.
 

“I tend to lose perceptions of my surroundings, time. My team’s empath, Mia, would keep lookout for any cues. If I appeared too emotional—fearful, enraged, whatever—she’d flag Rider, and he’d either pull me out or try and calm me down.”
 

“Good to know,” Kaeden commented as he sat in a chair beside her. “Empathy is a secondary ability for me, so I’ll do what I can to match Mia’s work. Dagan, be ready to go in if needed.”
 

The fact that they immediately planned to back her was impressive. She’d expected to waste valuable time proving she could do what she claimed. Then again, Dagan had already seen her do it once.
 

She took a moment to regard the SEO commander. Holy hotness. He was everything she’d expected and more. Unruly dark brown hair accentuated a powerful jawline. Brown eyes so light they appeared golden flickered with amusement as she continued her assessment. Muscles bulged beneath a dark t-shirt, which was tucked into black cargo pants. She swallowed as her gaze moved downward, noting the lean hips and powerful thighs. He was sleek, sinewy grace.
Confidence oozed from him, in the stance of his tall, muscular frame and the ease he maintained despite her obvious ogling. She averted her attention to Dagan and dragged herself back into the conversation when his voice rose.
 

“She’s already gone in once. Her nose bled. She can’t be in too long.”
 

The weight of his concern settled warmly in her belly, fluttering her arousal back to life.
 

“Risking your health isn’t an option.”
 

“This will be different. I flagged the data streams I need to grab. I should be able to go in and zip directly to them.” She took a few deep breaths and pushed back the pangs of remorse rising in her. “I probably should’ve done that with the stuff I was looking at when I got tagged by Conver, but I honestly don’t recall seeing anything noteworthy. Clearly I overlooked something.”
 

“So we’ll go in, grab the intel of Rider you discovered first, then dump the data streams from the other day secondarily. We can all review it together.” Kaeden looked at Ace. “The backup networks ready?”
 

Ace nodded. “Ready. Let’s rock it.”
 

Indeed. She reached out and established contact with the network before anyone could change his mind. Finding Rider was all that mattered right now. Well, that and figuring out exactly why all this started in the first place.
 

Trusting strangers to have her back was daunting, but they were SEO—the elite of Conver’s super soldiers. Besides, Dagan trusted them. The magnetic connection cemented a foundation with him. If Dagan was at their back, so was she.
 

The data stream remained intact in its original location. Fear compounded, adding a brushfire of desperation, when she saw Rider. Ravaged by an obviously brutal beating, he remained unmoving, defenseless thanks to the collar around his neck. The horrid device had been the bane of their existence years ago. They’d all vowed to never be booted like that again.