Hidden Agendas (40 page)

The man was stripped away now, and all that was left was the creature.

"Oh God, Nathan, please. He's here. Kell is here," she whispered beseechingly. "Don't let them take this from you. God, please, don't let them steal your rescue."

She had to make him see reason, had to make him listen. What had he said earlier? A certain position reminded him of his wife.

She laid her head back against the wall, revealing only her profile to him, fighting to breathe, certain this was her last chance. If he didn't see reason now, then she was going to be a bloody mess when Kell arrived.

"Kell is here," she said again, softer this time. She had no idea what his wife sounded like, but she was giving it her best shot. "He's come to rescue you, Nathan."

He blinked back in confusion.

"Don't you want to go home?"

His hand shook.

"I want to go home, Nathan. I just want to go home." She wanted to lie in Kell's arms, she wanted to hear him whisper to her again. "Let's go home, Nathan."

"Home is gone." His hand gripped the knife tighter. "Home is gone. Goodbye."

* * *

Stop that fucking copter, stop it now, goddammit." Kell sprayed a round of gunfire at the copter as it lifted off, wavering for a second before banking and heading out to sea and taking Fuentes with it. He was escaping again. "Son of a bitch." Throwing the assault weapon over his shoulder, Kell sprinted the few feet to the cell where Emily was being held.

Kell jerked the Beretta from the holster on his hip, shot the lock free and burst into the room. Into hell.

"Fuck!"

Naked, aroused, a homemade knife held in his hand, Nathan jerked Emily from the cot and pushed her behind him.

Irish blue eyes stared back at him in madness as Emily's dark eyes, wide with terror, watched him hopefully.

"He's drugged," she gasped. "The Whore's Dust. A lot of it."

"Shut up," Nathan yelled, the knife wavering in his hand. "Stay away from her. Let her alone."

Not his fault
. She mouthed the words silently; tears tracking down her cheeks as Nathan dragged her closer to him.

That was his little fox. Always fighting for someone else.

"Nate." Kell kept his voice low despite the desperation clawing inside him. "Let's go, Nate. It's time to evac."

Nathan blinked back at him. "Evac?"

"The chopper is outside, Nate. Time to get the girl out of here and go home. Your wife is waiting for you, Nate. You gonna disappoint her?"

For a second, Kell swore he saw a hint of sanity in Nathan's eyes.

"They found the tracker," Nathan growled. "The heel won't work."

God! They would have cut that damned tracker out of the heel of his foot. Son of a bitch.

"We don't need it, Nate," he said softly. "Come on, man, let's go home."

"I won't let you hurt her," Nathan growled. "They left her here to hurt her. So you could hurt her. I could hurt her. Someone was going to hurt her."

"Not anymore, Nathan. We have Fuentes and Clay," he lied, his eyes locked on that knife. "Let's go home, man."

"Home?" The knife wavered as he seemed to stumble.

And then Emily moved. How she did it, how she knew to do it, Kell had no idea. Before he could jump for her, her elbow slammed into Nathan's undefended belly as her other hand locked beneath his wrist and pushed at it just enough to give Kell the chance to jump for Nathan and pull her free.

Free. He shoved her behind him, staring at Nathan carefully as rage flickered in his eyes a second before he slumped back to the wall.

"And here I thought he would have the nerve to kill if he found the chance."

Kell swung around, pushing Emily behind him again to stare down the wrong end of the pistol Jansen Clay was holding on them.

"Son of a bitch!" Kell cursed. "I'm just about getting sick of having you in my fucking face, Jansen. There are two teams of SEALs out there. Do you really think you're going to get away this time?"

"Only the three of you know about me." Jansen shrugged. "I kill you and it's over with."

"Wrong." Kell took great satisfaction in watching Jansen's eyes narrow almost fearfully. "We knew who had her. We tracked your wife to that chateau in Switzerland. She's being picked up by American agents even as we speak."

He felt Emily behind him, her slender fingers gripping the Beretta he had tucked into the back of his pants. Fear slammed into his gut.

"It doesn't matter," Jansen stated quietly. "Without witnesses, it will be very hard to prove. You can watch your friend die, then die yourself as I take Emily."

The gun turned on Nathan as Jansen's finger tightened on the trigger, and the little fox that Kell would have sworn would never hurt a fly fired the weapon from his side.

Point-blank at the center of Jansen Clay's chest.

The gun dropped from Jansen's fingers, his hand covering the wound as he turned his surprised gaze back to Emily.

"I didn't hurt you," he whispered in shock. "I was going to save you ..." He lifted his hand and stared at the blood staining it before his gaze returned to Emily. "I was coming for you—"

He collapsed to the floor as Captain Malone and Commander Charles rushed into the room.

"Em." Kell jerked around, prepared to snatch the gun from her nerveless fingers, prepared for the horror in her eyes. What he saw instead sent a surge of heat rushing through his veins. Her gaze was clear; only a glimmer of remorse touched the blue depths as she deftly turned her wrist, holding the gun, barrel pointing down, out to him.

"Monsters don't deserve to live," she said calmly. "I won't lose any sleep over killing him."

He took the gun carefully, tucked it in the band of his pants again then jerked her into his arms, holding her close, feeling his throat tighten with the emotion that suddenly filled it.

"God, I love you," he whispered.

Kissing her brow, Kell sighed deeply before releasing her just enough to turn and watch the men swarming into the room. The medics had come prepared for Nathan, but Kell wondered if anything could put the man together again.

He was slumped against the wall, naked, his eyes filled with madness as he glared at Jansen's dead body.

His muscles twitched spasmodically, his once-strong body nearly emaciated.

"Nathan?" The captain moved slowly into the room, staring at his nephew as tears filled his light blue eyes. "Boy, you're slacking off. Did I give you permission to rest?" Malone's tone snapped with strength.

Nathan jerked, dragging the blanket closer as he tried to struggle to his feet.

"Do you walk out of here or do we carry you?" the captain barked.

"Make him stop." Emily flinched at the tone. "Please, Kell."

"No, Emily. If he doesn't walk out of here, he'll never have a chance of surviving." He held her close, watching as a glimmer of sanity returned to Nathan's eyes as he struggled to come to attention.

"Boy. I said do we carry you out?" the captain yelled.

"No, sir." Nathan shook his head. "No, sir."

"On your feet."

Nathan struggled to his feet, securing the blanket around his hips.

"Sir." He weaved. "On my feet."

"You will walk to that helicopter outside. You will submit yourself to the medic standing by. Are we clear, Lieutenant Malone?"

Nathan shuddered, shivered, but his head tilted before wobbling on his shoulders.

"Sir. Understood." His voice was weak as he moved. One foot in front of the other. A harsh frown creasing his brow.

The captain's eyes gleamed with dampness as his nephew neared him.

"Sir." Nathan paused beside him.

"Yes, Lieutenant." The captain firmed his shaking lips.

"Sir. I could use a crutch." His knees gave way, but the captain was there, his arms going around the taller man's bony body, holding him to him as he shook with silent sobs.

"I have you, son," he whispered. "I'll be your crutch."

Kell watched as they moved through the doorway, nephew and uncle.

His arms tightened around Emily as his gaze was drawn once again to Jansen's dead body.

"Those gun lessons came in handy," he murmured.

"Yeah, they did." Her voice was shaky now, but hell, he was shaky, Kell thought. "And I won't lose a moment's sleep over it."

He met her eyes and saw an understanding there he hadn't expected. One he wouldn't have asked for, because the warrior inside him wouldn't be denied. But she understood. For the first time, he thought, she understood why he and her father had gone off to war, why they had risked their lives and the happiness of those they left behind.

To give innocence a chance.

"You two ready to go home?" the senator asked from the doorway. "We're going to be doing a lot of explaining."

"Home sounds damned good." Emily sighed. "Real damned good."

"Have they picked up Elaine?" Kell asked the senator.

"They took her into custody a while ago." Richard grimaced. "We sent agents to the hospital Risa was admitted to and had her forcibly removed and taken to Bethesda. She was in bad shape."

Kell felt the shaky breath Emily drew in.

"Jansen let the guards rape her on the plane the first time we were kidnapped," she whispered, tears choking her voice. "She'll need help."

Richard nodded. "And she'll get it. Come on, children, let's load up. I'm just getting too damned old for this shit."

He wasn't the only one. Kell swung Emily into his arms, holding her close to his chest as she buried her face against him and let her tears fall free.

She had been strong. So damned strong. She hadn't even hesitated to take Clay out. The single shot had pierced the other man's heart and exploded from his back. At close range, cold as ice and madder than hell, his kitten had taken her vengeance despite his wishes to the contrary.

"Okay?" He cradled her in his arms as the helicopter lifted from Clay's seaside home.

She nodded. "Tired though. Very tired."

"Sleep, baby." He kissed her forehead. "Just sleep and I'll take care of everything else. I promise. I'll take care of it all."

She didn't have nightmares, it was twelve hours before she collapsed into a bed only barely aware of Kell moving onto the mattress beside her and pulling her into his arms. There were no nightmares. She slept deep and undisturbed until a kiss feathered across her lips.

Emily felt the blankets easing slowly from her body as Kell kissed her with an aching hunger she had never known from him. Gentle kisses, soft nips at her lips, the lick of his tongue over the rounded curves as he pulled her closer to him.

"Emily." He breathed her name into the kiss. "Wake up for me, baby."

His hands moved over her body, sliding over her skin and setting off flares of pleasure that overwhelmed her awakening mind.

She had to touch him. To lean into his kiss, to soak up the heat and power that was so much a part of him. She needed him. Here and now, before he had time to remember the world outside and to walk away from her.

Struggling in his hold, she pushed him to his back, aware he was lying against the pillow now only because he wanted to. Whatever the reason, she rose over him, her eyes opening in drowsy heat to stare into the brilliance of his.

So green. His sun-darkened expression was different. Stronger. More intent than she had ever seen before.

"No condom." she moaned. "I want to feel you. All of you."

"We'll make babies, Emily," he whispered back. "Beautiful little babies."

Emily froze, her hands splayed against his shoulders.

She could feel herself shaking then, a fine tremor beginning in her heart and spreading through her body.

"Babies mean forever," she whispered as he lifted her above him, parting her thighs until she straddled his hips.

"So does love," he said, guiding his hard cock to nudge against the damp folds between her thighs. "Love is forever, Emily. And I love you. Forever."

He eased inside her. The thick crest parted her vagina, fiery warmth began to invade her body.

His lips caught hers as his cock impaled her, easing in to the hilt as the breath caught in her throat and she swore her eyes crossed at the pleasure.

"You ran me to ground." He smiled against her lips as he turned her onto her back before his lips moved to her neck, her shoulder. "I'm yours, Emily. I've always been yours."

His lips moved to her breast, covering a nipple, sipping at it with greedy hunger as his hips began to move, sliding his cock through the slick portal he possessed, sending sensation and exquisite pleasure to build and consume.

Lifting to him, Emily's arms went around his shoulders, her lips to his neck, tasting him, feeling him.

Heat poured from his body, from hers. It was like this each time they touched, as though no part of her body had ever been cold. The fires of need carefully banked whenever he was away, always flared to life once she saw him again.

But the flares were building. Like fingers of wicked, white-hot pleasure they rushed through her, snapping and zapping over tender nerve endings, sensitizing her, building the pleasure until she was crying out for him, begging for more.

"Ah, chère," he groaned in her ear. "You move like silk against me."

Her legs tightened around his thrusting hips as he fucked her harder, deeper. The way she liked it, with desperate demand, without control.

His hips churned above her, thrust and impaled, driving his cock into the tightening muscles of her pussy as she fought to hold back, to milk every particle of sensation, every microsecond of hunger swirling around them.

"I love you, chère," he whispered at her ear, his voice gasping, thick, rough. "With a soul I didn't believe I possessed, I love you. Always, Emily."

"I love you." Her eyes opened as his head lifted from her breast and his eyes snared her. "I love you—

Kell—love you."

She was screaming as sensation overtook her now. The orgasm ripped through her, tore through nerve endings, spasmed in her womb, and as she felt his sperm flooding her pussy, she went higher.

Past and future disintegrated. Her mind disintegrated. It melted beneath the heat and the power of release. Her release, his release. The completion of it seared her soul even as he whispered his love again. Vowed it, swore it. Kell collapsed over her, catching his weight on his elbows as his chest heaved with the need for oxygen and something inside his soul seemed to tear free. As though facing what he felt for her, facing her with it, had somehow torn free the shadows that had held him for so many years.