Blind Faith (35 page)

Twists and turns through the pathway kept her head spinning until she wasn’t sure how to find the way

back out. Finally, they reached a large metal door set into the rock. How had they gotten such a heavy door

down so far under the building?

The first man rapped several times on the door, and it slowly and rather majestically opened. Then the

two men flanked the door, while the third pushed her between the shoulder blades and then shut it,

remaining on the outside.

Bracing herself, she walked into a circular room cut smoothly into rock. A massive table sat in the

middle, surrounded by hand-carved wooden chairs. Old and magnificent. At least twenty people could

comfortably sit around and plot whatever it was they plotted there so deeply hidden.

Right now Lilith Mayes sat at the head of the table wearing a white robe with a blade insignia over her

left breast. Senator Nash sat to her right with two men wearing black robes sitting next to him. Two other

men, also robed in black, sat to Lilith’s left after one empty seat.

Shock filled Audrey at recognizing both Lilith and the senator. Hurt came next. Her hands shook and

her knees wobbled.

Heat of betrayal attacked her, followed by an icy knife of reality. She’d trusted him—genuinely liked

him. He was the closest she’d ever had to a father figure who cared. He’d wanted to carve her a crib.

Her throat clogged. Why did she keep choosing the wrong people to trust? Her breath caught and she

searched for an escape.

Lights, probably powered from a generator, lined the walls in intricate sconces. Silver and glinting, a

sword hung from the ceiling a little way from the table. At least seven feet long, the sharp blade held the

insignia PROTECT down its graceful edge.

Beautiful and deadly.

Audrey cleared her throat. “Where’s the sacrificial altar?” Her gaze landed on the senator.

Lilith laughed, the sound tinkling oddly through the room. “No altar. Sorry.” She gestured toward a seat

next to her. “You’re going to want to sit down.”

A barrel between Audrey’s shoulder blades propelled her toward the seat, where she couldn’t help

sending the senator a hurt look. He’d gone pale, his expressive eyes full of sorrow. His hands shook as he

rested them on the table. “Why is Audrey here?”

Lilith smoothed a curl off her forehead. “She’s here because we need access to the commander’s data,

and she’s our way in. We have to purify what that man and his people have done.”

Audrey blinked. “Purify? What does that mean?”

Lilith gestured behind her to the iconic sword. “Life and humans need to be pure. For decades, our

group has shut down all experiments to change DNA of humans. No cloning, no testing, no aberrations.”

Audrey gulped down bile. She really needed to throw up. “I don’t understand. You worked with

George Fairbanks for almost a decade, and he wore the sword brand.”

Lilith sighed. “Yes, George and I were the best of friends, and he was the one who initially inducted me

into this marvelous society. But he let his scientific curiosity get the better of him. For years, we worked on

computer technology together that assisted us in our fight, but then George discovered nanobytes, and he

changed.”

Audrey straightened her shoulders. “So you killed him.”

“Of course,” Lilith said.

“Why leave him in my apartment?” Audrey asked.

“Why not?” Lilith lifted a shoulder. “Since we also killed Darian, and you easily connected the two, why

not use you to deflect the attention a little bit?”

Audrey’s head spun, while her instincts hummed. “Bullshit. There’s more.”

Lilith’s upper lip curled. “This is business.”

“No. This is personal.” Audrey leaned forward, her hands fisting. “You and Darian had a thing, right?

Did he dump you?”

Lilith’s nostrils flared. “I’m going to kill you.”

“Maybe.” Maybe not. “Why did you kill Darian?”

Lilith sighed. “I just went through all of this. Darian was on our side, and he was inducted, but when he

discovered our plan to take you, he turned rogue and tried to warn you. So he had to die.” She brushed lint

off her robe. “Plus, the bastard did dump me.”

“Yet you went out with, uh, Jason.” Crap. Audrey had almost forgotten Nate’s undercover name. “I saw

you making a move.”

Lilith’s eyes glittered. “Jason watched you all night, even on a date with me.
With me.
I don’t know

what your draw is, but I’m going to end it. You have been such a complete pain to me. Torturing you will

be a pleasure, so please don’t give me all the info I need up front.”

What a nutjob.

Audrey swallowed. “I don’t know anything.”

“Exactly.” The senator leaned forward. “Let her go, and I’ll do whatever you want.”

Audrey frowned. It was a little late for him to help, wasn’t it? “You have no idea who I am or the

connections I have. Let me go, or I promise you’ll die and fast.”

“I can’t wait to cut into you.” Lilith drew out an intimidating knife—the exact replica of the one

suspended from the ceiling.

“You can’t cut her—she’s pregnant,” the senator said, his eyes widening.

Oh God. Oh no.
Audrey shot him a black look.

Lilith frowned, studying Audrey. “Really? Well, you started dating Darian, and he’s dead. I know you

spend a lot of time with the commander, and I know all about the madman from my sweet Darian.” A wild

gleam entered her eyes. “Are you part of the commander’s experiments?”

“No. One-night stand,” Audrey said, trying to sound calm.

Delight lifted Lilith’s eyebrows. “You’re lying. Wonderful. Just wonderful. You have an aberration

inside you.”

Terror nearly lifted Audrey from the chair. “You’re crazy.” She donned a bored expression and focused

back on the senator. “I know you have strong religious beliefs, but I can’t believe you aligned with this

crazed bitch.”

In a surprisingly smooth movement, the senator lunged for the knife, snatching it from Lilith’s hand. He

stood, jerking her back to his chest, the blade at her throat. “I haven’t aligned with this lunatic,” he said.

All four men flanking the table shoved away and stood, two of them drawing Glocks, the other two

pointing Sigs.

Audrey pushed back from the table. “Um—”

Faded blue eyes shot sparks over Lilith’s head. “You thought I had something to do with this?” Long

and lean, the senator loomed over the deadly blonde.

“Um, no?” Audrey stood, her gaze on the man she’d trusted. “Okay. I’m confused.”

The senator nodded. “I get that. This witch drugged me, and I ended up here in this bizarre chamber.

Kidnapping a United States senator is a federal crime, you know.”

Relief almost dropped Audrey back down. The senator was one of the good guys. Thank goodness.

Lilith rolled her eyes. “Senator, I’ve been trying to make you understand. You believe in life, and not in

experimentation. We’re on the same side.”

“The hell we are,” the senator boomed. “You’re crazy.”

Audrey shook her head. She was right to have trusted him. “I’m sorry,” she whispered to him.

He grinned. “That’s okay. I feel like James Bond.”

An explosion ripped by Audrey’s ear. Red bloomed across the senator’s upper right chest, and his jaw

dropped open in shock. He released Lilith and backed away, falling to his knees.

The guy to Audrey’s right chuckled, his gun steaming. “The robes aren’t for show, asshole.”

Audrey cried out and ran around the table, sliding onto her knees. Pain radiated up her bad leg, but she

didn’t care. “Senator?” she asked, lifting his head to her knees.

His eyes widened with shock, and he coughed. Fear and pain crossed his face.

Audrey shrugged out of her coat and balled it up to press against the wound. Her gaze darted around for

help and landed on Lilith. “He needs medical attention.”

Lilith pursed red lips, regret twisting them. “I’m afraid not.” She shook her head. “I do wish you

would’ve joined us in our quest, Senator.”

Blood seeped between Audrey’s fingers and helplessness flooded her. “Please let me get him to a

doctor.”

Lilith sighed and focused on the shooter. “Finish him off, and dispose of his body. We can’t be linked

to this.” Reaching down, she clung to Audrey’s arm. “We need to get to a medical facility to see what

exactly is growing inside our new member here.”

Audrey ripped her arm free. “Screw you.”

“Classy.” Lilith nodded at the two men closest to Audrey. “Please remove her so we can finish off our

business here.” Thoughtful contemplation filled the woman’s expression.

She didn’t care one wit about life.

Audrey pressed harder against the senator’s wound, and he groaned. “How can you so easily kill if your

mission is to protect life?” She directed her question to the silent men in black and not to their leader. Lilith

had killed too many people to care.

The shooter grinned. “We care about pure life, not all life. Some people are collateral damage in our

war.”

“You have no idea about war,” the senator hissed, pain filling his face. “No idea at all.”

“It’s okay,” Audrey murmured. The senator had fought in Korea and had the medals to prove it. He was

tough, and she could figure out a way to save him. But the warm blood rushing along her fingers promised

she didn’t have much time. “Stay still so you don’t bleed as much.”

Lilith glared down at Audrey. “Get away from him, or I’ll make you regret it in ways you can’t even

imagine.”

“Think so?” Audrey eyed her immediate area for any type of weapon. Only smooth, stone floor met her

gaze.

“Yes.” Lilith nodded at a man covering the far door. “Let me show you what we do with our enemies.

Now, Freddie.”

The man who’d shot the senator opened the door and reached inside to remove a man wearing a black

hood. He fell to his knees, his arms bound behind his back. With flourish, Freddie snagged off the hood.

Nate. Audrey blinked, time grinding to a complete halt. Bruised and battered, his clothing ripped and

filthy, Nate Dean kneeled on the stone floor, pure fury in his gray eyes.

Chapter 28

Nate eyed Audrey, tuning in to her heartbeat as well as the baby’s. Steady and strong, both. Audrey’s

thumped much too quickly, however. He smiled, ignoring the crack in his bottom lip. “Hello, Miss

Madison.”

Audrey’s face paled to the color of white chalk. “I don’t understand.”

Lilith giggled and clapped her hands together. “Life is weird, right? Jason has been investigating me,

and it turns out, his past is a little hazy. I thought Freddie could get answers from him, but so far, Jason has

been tougher than I’d expected.”

Realization flickered in Audrey’s eyes.

Nate gave a short nod. Lilith had no clue about their real connection, nor about his true identity.

Audrey frowned, surprise twisting her lip. “So you, ah, captured Jason?”

If there was a
what-the-fuck
expression, Audrey wore it right now. Embarrassment flooded through

Nate. “It wasn’t as easy as she’s making it sound.” Why was he defending himself? He’d been knocked out

by some good drugs, for Pete’s sake. Yeah, it was a rookie move. He sighed.

Lilith sauntered over and ran long fingernails through Nate’s hair.

A small growl emerged from Audrey’s chest, and Nate cut her a hard look to knock it off. If Lilith

discovered their connection, she’d turn on Audrey.

Right now, Nate had enough problems. The senator was bleeding out, Audrey was unarmed and

pregnant, Lilith was crazy, and several men with guns seemed ready to happily kill him. But he’d spent the

last hour trying to get his hands free, and he was almost there.

The first one he’d take out would be Freddie. The guy had enjoyed kicking Nate in the face for

information, but Nate hadn’t given him anything interesting. He’d been tortured by the best during some of

his missions, and this guy hadn’t come close.

Lilith tugged his head back, nails scraping his scalp, as he finally worked the ropes free around his

wrists.

Yep. His chance. He leaped to his feet and secured her in a headlock while kicking Freddie in the back

of the knee. Freddie went down, and Nate stole the gun from his holster.

Four guns instantly pointed his way. He pressed the barrel to Lilith’s throat, ducking down to keep her

as cover. “How loyal is your little band of morons here, Lilith?” he asked, making sure to press hard

enough that she winced. “If anyone even flinches, I’ll blow your head off.”

She held perfectly still. “I didn’t think you had it in you, Jason.”

He eyed a twitchy guy to the left of the table. “Getting drugged and kicked around for a few hours can

change a guy. Just so we’re clear, I have no problem killing you.”

“I believe you.” Her gasp echoed around the chamber. “Why do I have the feeling you’re not quite what

you’ve let on?”

“I don’t know.” Nate leaned closer to her ear. “Tell them to drop their guns, or I swear, I’ll shoot.”

She chuckled. “No, you won’t. If you shoot me, they’ll have no reason not to kill you.”