Catherine Spangler - [Sentinel 02] - Touched By Fire (v5.0) (html) (18 page)

Four hours later, they sat at the kitchen table, looking at Luke’s laptop. A pot of spaghetti sauce simmered on the stove, and the house had been dusted and vacuumed and clean sheets put on the beds. Marla had insisted on helping, despite Luke’s protests.

She’d also been doing laundry and had a second load going. Luke had done a surprisingly good job of packing for her before he took her to Needville, probably because he had a sister, but she was still limited in items, and they’d all been dirty.

Now the strains of a Tom Petty song rocked from the stereo in the family room, while the washer hummed in the small utility room off the kitchen. The mouthwatering scent of the spaghetti sauce filled the kitchen. It felt strange doing homey things with Luke. Oddly, he seemed very at ease with the domestic scene, yet it didn’t diminish his breathtaking masculinity in any way.

They’d spent the last two hours on the Internet, compiling a comprehensive list of the largest churches in the Dallas area, along with addresses, phone numbers, and service times.

Marla was surprised by how methodical and objective the Sentinel tracking process appeared to be, despite the sexual and mystical overtones of the conduction process. But there were a few things she didn’t understand.

“With the Belian getting ready to bomb a church, why aren’t you contacting local authorities?” she asked.

Luke sat back in the chair. “We work with the authorities when we have concrete information. In this case, reporting the bomber now would make things worse. We’d be under close scrutiny and questioned about how we got this information. That could slow down the tracking. Homeland Security would raise the advisory system warning in this area to ‘High,’ and people would panic.

“Every church would want the bomb squads checking their facility, crackpots would start calling in false bomb threats. The police don’t have the resources to check out the majority of bomb threats. They don’t usually send their bomb techs unless someone finds something strange or suspicious inside the building in question.”

“I didn’t know that,” Marla said. “I just assumed the police came if you called them.”

“They can’t, not with the high number of reported bomb threats they get. Take it another step further. If Homeland Security raised the alert level, and news agencies reported a threat, people would stop going to church.

“Not only would the Belian thrive on the fear and the chaos, but it wouldn’t halt its plan. It would either wait until things calmed down and the alert level was lowered, or it would go forward anyway. Or maybe set off a diversion bomb, then strike somewhere else.”

“I never thought about that.”

“Belians are extremely cunning. They’re powerful enough to redirect human thoughts and actions, so this one could slip by police, even during a security crackdown. Another possibility would be that the Belian, knowing we’ve gotten this close to it, would leave and go elsewhere. Then it would be harder to track, and could take a lot more lives before we caught up with it again.”

“But still, we’re talking about risk to innocent people.”

“Believe me, I know. We don’t want to lose any more lives, but if we don’t catch this thing soon, the casualties will be much worse. As soon as we get a fix on its next target, we will contact the authorities. As a matter of fact, there is a Sentinel among Homeland Security staff. She’s been alerted and is being kept up to date.”

“Wow. You guys are really organized.”

That got a small smile. “You betcha, babe.” He started shutting down the laptop. “Tomorrow we’ll start visiting some of the churches and see if we can pick up anything.”

“But there are so many. How will we cover them all?”

“Adam will be here tomorrow, and Damien and Kara will be here on Saturday. It’s possible Adam is calling in other Sentinels, if they’re not on crucial trackings. We’ll do the best we can.”

Marla hated the sense of helplessness she felt; to know such an evil existed and what it was planning, and not be able to do a damned thing about it. At the same time, what Luke said made sense.

His expression became serious. “There is one thing we can do tonight, though. We can try to contact the Belian—through you.”

TWELVE

“ME?” But she already knew exactly where this was going.

“Yeah. Adam and I talked about it. We think this unusual link you have with the Belian might help track it. But any contact needs to be in a controlled environment, not when your defenses are down.”

Her heart sped up; she could feel her palms growing damp. “So we’re going to do another conduction?”

“No. We need more of the Belian’s energy pattern before another conduction would benefit us. We’ve already worked the energies we have so far.” Luke closed the laptop, moved it aside. “But you seem to have a direct psychic link with it, even though I don’t believe you’re telepathic.”

She wiped her palms on her jeans. “Then how am I able to communicate with it?”

“
It
is communicating with you. Remember that both Sentinels and Belians have the same basic powers, including strong psychic abilities, with two differences. The first is that Sentinels operate out of the three higher chakras, Belians from the four lower earth-based chakras. The second difference is that some Sentinels have matched human conductors.”

“There are no matched conductors for Belians?”

“Not that we know of.”

An ugly possibility halted her breath. “How can you be sure? What if I’m matched with this thing?”

Luke shook his head. “No. From your reaction when you first encountered its energy, it’s safe to say there’s no mutual attraction.”

Relief skittered through her. “Thank God.”

“But because you’re sensitive to the Belian’s emotions, your reaction somehow broadcast to it. It sensed your presence, homed in on your energy and created a psychic path.”

A shiver ran through her. “So it has a direct pathway to me.”

He placed a reassuring hand on her arm. “Not exactly. You have natural shields that you’re not even aware of. You also have as much extra shielding as I can give you. But there is a path, and we might be able to open a link to the Belian. It might unknowingly give you some information that could help us.”

He pushed his chair back, angling it so he faced her. “Assuming that you agree to do this.”

She moved her chair back as well, tried to calm her racing heart. “Is this the liability waiver thing again? I thought I already signed off on that.”

That got a small grin. “You did, smart aleck. But this is different from a conduction. It will bring you in closer contact with the Belian.”

She thought again of the victims and their families. “So what do I do after I get this thing on the psychic phone line? I don’t know what to say to it.”

“Right now, we just want to establish a bond with it. If you make contact, don’t give the Belian too much information. Don’t tell it where you are, not yet. Don’t mention Sentinels. It may not be aware that you’re working with us.

“This Belian is probably very smart, as are most Belians—and most successful bombers—and a psychopath. It will have a huge ego and an over inflated sense of importance. Play on that. Tell it you admire it, that you’re impressed with its intelligence. Try to get a name, a location, possible next target, anything that might help.”

She drew a deep breath. “What if I screw this up?”

“You won’t. We have nothing to lose by trying this.” He held out his left hand. “Give me your right hand.”

She did, felt the immediate flare of energy. “What are we doing now?”

“Creating a connection between our third eyes. I’ll feed you the Belian’s energy pattern, which will hopefully open a psychic path on a vibratory level that it will sense. When you feel a link forming with the Belian, just direct your thoughts and questions toward it.”

And she’d be hooked up to that thing. “When do I break the link?”

“Any time you feel in danger, or if the Belian tries psychic manipulation, let go of my hand, which will end the conduit. I’ll be right here, monitoring the energies. I won’t know what the Belian is saying to you, but I should be able to sense anything dangerous.”

“This feels like Russian roulette, only with psychic bullets,” she muttered.

“With any luck, the Belian will get the loaded chamber.” Luke gestured with his free hand, and the music cut off.

He pulled the pink quartz pendant from beneath his shirt and wrapped his fingers around it. In the ensuing silence, she felt an increasing intensity around them. “Ready?” he asked.

She nodded. Immediately, she felt pressure inside her head; saw a photo flash of indigo light. “Third eyes engaging,” he murmured.

Darkness rushed at her, depravity and hatred flooding her. It was like being back at the shack, engulfed in the Belian’s evil. She gasped, instinctively trying to pull back.

“Stay with me. This is just the residual Belian energy, the psychic footprint.”

And he’d been carrying that around inside him? How could he stand it? Still feeling the horrifying onslaught, Marla battled to draw air into her lungs, to keep her stomach from heaving. She sensed Luke’s energy flowing around her, balancing and supporting her.

Drawing on sheer will, she forced herself to flow with the darkness and to open mentally to the Belian. In her mind, she could actually see an energy trail rolling away from her, toward a distant horizon. Then, as if a doorway had opened, she felt the pressure change, sensed she was on a threshold.

And he—
it
—was on the other side. She tried to speak, but managed only a hoarse rasp. “Just direct your thoughts,” came Luke’s quiet voice. She started to panic when she felt him pulling back. “I’m still here. I’m just shielding my energy so the Belian won’t sense me. Talk to it, Marla.”

She tried to breathe, tried to think, and then resolutely reached out.
“Hello. Are you there?”

Silence, punctuated by her erratic heartbeat.

“Hello,”
she repeated.
“I’ve been wanting to talk to you again.”

“You,”
came the odd hissing.
“Mar-lah.”

She resisted the urge to break the link.
“Yes, it’s Marla. I
-
I’ve been looking for you.”

She could sense its suspicion.
“Because I find you so interesting. So . . . intelligent.”

She felt the darkness rolling off it in waves. Bile rose in her throat. Taking another breath, she forced it down.
“That’s why I like talking to you. What is your name?”

Ignoring that, it asked,
“Where are you, Marla?”

She resisted the compulsion behind the question.
“Are you still in Austin? I
-
I would like to meet you.”

It radiated disapproval.
“I do not like aggressive women. I hope you are not pushy, Marla. I would be most disappointed.”

She could barely think, with the evil stench inundating her, with the fear tearing at her.
“I’m sorry. I’m not normally aggressive. I just
—
I find you fascinating.”

“When will I get to see another impressive display of your brilliance?”
she hedged.

Fear sent adrenaline pounding through her body.
“I
—
uh, I’m far away.”

She could sense its growing anger, knew she wouldn’t gain any information now. “
I have to go. Someone’s here.”

Fear grew to panic.
“No
—
no, it’s my sister. I’m going now.
” She maintained enough presence of mind to add, “
I hope we can talk again soon. Good-bye.”

She pulled her hand free from Luke’s, shoved the chair back. Clutching the edges of the chair seat, she drew in great gulping breaths. She could still feel the taint clinging to her.

He leaned forward. “Hey, you okay?”

“Hell, no.” Chills wracked her, and she wrapped her arms around herself. “I’ve never felt anything so awful. Well, actually, there have been a few other things, since I met you.”

He reached over and rubbed her arms. His fingers felt so warm, and she was freezing.
To hell with not being needy.
She scrambled from the chair and into his lap, her head hitting his chin.

“Ouch! Hey, take it easy,” he said, but he slid his arms around her and gathered her close.

Yes.
She settled against him with a sigh, and soaked in his warmth and calmness. She could get used to this, to cuddling with him every time they visited a BCS or did a conduction. He shifted to hold her better, and the chair groaned in protest. Poor chair. Neither of them were lightweights.

“Do you think we’ll end up on the floor?” she asked.

“Maybe. Let’s move to the couch. Think you can stand?”

Very reluctantly, she nodded. He stood, easing her to her feet, and she felt bereft at the loss of his warmth and touch. But he held her arm as they walked to the sofa. After sitting next to her, he turned his body sideways so he could face her. He kept his hand on her arm, rubbing in a slow, soothing pattern.

“Want to tell me what happened?”

She angled her body toward his. “You didn’t hear what I said?”

“No, you weren’t talking out loud. I could feel your anxiety and fear, but that was it.”

“The contact wasn’t successful. The Belian was suspicious and wouldn’t give me any information. It kept wanting to know where I was. Then it told me not to see any men, or it would punish me.”

Luke’s eyes narrowed. “Tell me everything that it said.”

So she repeated the conversation as close to verbatim as possible. It didn’t make her feel any better; the darkness lingered, like a taint on her soul.

“I still feel the presence of the Belian.” A horrifying thought occurred to her, and panic surged. “What if it’s possessed me?”

“No, it hasn’t.” He grasped her chin, tipped her face up. “Look at me, Marla.”

He leaned closer, and she stared into his eyes, falling into the blue depths. Warmth and brilliant light swirled through her, chasing away the darkness. “You will never be possessed by a Belian,” he said firmly. “You have too much light and love within you. The darkness can’t overcome that.”

His face was mere inches from hers. She felt the pull of the sexual energy between them; knew from the tension in his body that he felt it, too. Her gaze shifted lower to his firm mouth. A very enticing mouth.

He radiated sensuality and heat, and she wanted desperately to kiss him. She inched closer, her thigh hitting his and shooting electricity through her. She saw the flash of awareness in his eyes. Responding on a primal level, she licked her lips, saw his attention focused on her mouth.

She wasn’t sure how . . . it just . . . happened. She found herself stretching upward, sliding her hands along his face, and kissing him.

She felt his jolt of surprise and the sensual rush flowing between them. Felt his slight hesitation and dug in, determined to have this bit of sheer pleasure, no matter how brief. She teased his lips with her tongue, thought for a shattering moment he wouldn’t let her in.

But then she sensed his acceptance as his hands slid up to cup her face, his fingers tangling in her hair. He opened his mouth and she welcomed the slide of his tongue against hers. He tasted like coffee and mint. She inhaled his clean, woodsy scent, intoxicated by every sensual detail.

He was a primo kisser, and she soaked up the pleasure. She hadn’t kissed anyone in a long time. After Julia’s attack, she’d tried the dating scene, along with the good night kisses at the end of the evening. They’d left her cold.

But kissing Luke was like touching fire. It might ultimately burn her, but she didn’t care. With a small hum, she leaned into him. That seemed to shake him, and he started to pull away.

Uh-uh. She wasn’t finished with him yet. She tightened her hands on his shoulders, tugged him back, and resettled her lips over his. He tried to say something—probably a protest—but she took the opportunity and slid her tongue back into his mouth.

He gave a little groan, and then his tongue joined the dance with hers, slow, thorough, and electrifying. He was light and fire, warming every atom of her body. Lost in sensation, she discovered there were many subtle variations of a kiss—of which Luke was a master—and that the mouth was exquisitely sensitive. It also had a direct link to the rest of her body, which was blazing with need.

Oh, man, why had she waited so long to experience this?

He adjusted his position, allowing her to slide between his legs and come flush against him. His body was hard and hot and she could practically feel the pheromones flowing out of him.

All her body systems were on full, green light
Go!
Here was her chance to experience what Julia’s attack had almost destroyed. She grabbed Luke’s hand from her hip and placed it over her breast. That got his attention. He freed his mouth. “Marla, we have to stop now. This isn’t—”

“Just shut up. I want this, and I’m not going to let your scruples ruin it.” She kissed him again before he could protest further, felt a victorious surge when he made a guttural sound, and his fingers curved around her breast.

His thumb rubbed over her nipple, and she thought she might combust right then. He left her mouth to press his lips against her neck, and then to where her sweater dipped down. She knew he was fully in the game now, and sensual shivers raced through her.

“Luke,” she gasped, close to melting, all logical thought obliterated.