In Darkness Reborn (16 page)

Barak reminded her that their time below was limited. “I promised Devlin that we'd just run a diagnostic on the equipment. If it can't be fixed in only a few minutes, we bring it back to the lab.”

“Yes, Mother,” Lacey teased with a laugh.

She was cute in this playful mood, her eyes bright with excitement. He didn't want to dampen her spirits, but they needed to be alert and cautious.

“I'm serious, Lacey. At the first sign that someone's down there besides us, we're right back in the elevator, hollering for help. Devlin planned on having a couple of the Paladins nearby if we need them.”

They stepped out of the elevators at the same spot where he'd killed two humans on their last trip.

Her eyes went straight to the brown stains on the rock floor, her smile fading.

“They attacked first,” he said. He normally wouldn't defend his actions, but seeing him kill had frightened her.

“I know.” Then with a small smile, she grabbed his arm. “Come on, slowpoke. We don't have long before Devlin will send in the troops.”

He let himself be pulled along, liking the feel of her hand on his arm, but it made it difficult to concentrate. Trusting her to keep him from running into any walls, he closed his eyes and reached out with his senses.

The tunnels were devoid of heartbeats other than his and Lacey's. But a faint taste in the air brought him to an abrupt halt.

“What's wrong?” Lacey asked, wisely dropping her voice down into a soft whisper.

He held up a hand in a silent signal for her to wait. Turning slowly in each direction, he drew a series of shallow breaths, trying to catch the scent again. He found it in the direction in which they were headed.

Ben from IT had been in the tunnels, and recently, since his cologne was still discernable. What business did he have down here? Nothing legitimate, that was for certain.

Barak drew his sword. “Someone has been here. I don't think it was recently, but I want us out of here as fast as possible.”

“Who?”

“Someone who shouldn't have been. Now let's get moving.”

Lacey wanted to press for details, but she took his worry seriously. The first box she'd set up was functioning properly, but the second one wasn't only down—it had been brutalized to the point that the pieces probably weren't worth salvaging.

Lacey kicked one of the broken pieces across the floor in frustration. “These things aren't cheap. Why would anyone do this?” She picked up one of the dials and frowned at the crack in its cover. “Would your people do this?”

“Maybe, if they ran across it, but that's unlikely. We don't usually cross in this area. It's more likely one of your people, upset because we killed some of their men.” He sheathed his sword and helped gather up the scattered fragments.

“I'm sorry, Barak. I shouldn't have pointed fingers that way. It's just that it will be months before I have enough money in the budget to replace this. Paladins are the only ones who are supposed to patrol this area, and they'd have no reason to destroy my equipment. They all know I'm trying to learn how to predict earthquakes and things that affect the barrier.”

Barak avoided looking at her, for fear she'd see his regret over not sharing his gift for predicting earthquakes long before equipment like Lacey's could pick them up. With such foreknowledge, the Paladins would be better prepared when the barrier collapsed, which meant more from his world would die.

He'd turned his back on his world, but not the people in it. Maybe that was splitting hairs, but it was the only way he could live with himself.

He shoved the pieces back into the machine's casing and picked it up. “Maybe we can salvage part of this, enough to reset some of the sensors.”

She looked doubtful but gamely picked up another few items that Barak had missed. When she stuffed them in with the others, she surprised him by raising up on her toes to plant a quick kiss on his cheek.

“I appreciate your doing all of this with me.”

Her scent filled his senses, sending a surge of white-hot desire burning through him. “Careful, Lacey. It's not all I would like to do with you.” He let the heat show in the way he looked at her from head to toe, lingering in his favorite places along the way.

To give her credit, she didn't back away. Instead, she held out her hands for the broken casing. When he surrendered it, she set it down and stepped right into his arms.

The chill of the tunnels disappeared in the sweet heat of her kiss. He closed his eyes, using his hands to trace the curves of her body from memory, his ragged breath drawing in her scent and taste and making them part of his soul.

Her jeans put too much distance between them. He made enough room between them for his hand to reach for her zipper, but she beat him to it. Murmuring his approval, he slid his hands down the curve of her waist, easing both her jeans and panties off her hips and down to the ground.

As he slowly stood up, she smiled against his mouth. “Your turn.”

This was madness, and they both knew it. He didn't care, and apparently neither did she. Maybe he wasn't the only one who'd been dying of frustration the past two days.

Not trusting himself, he reached for his wallet and got out the condom he carried with him—just in case.

“Smart man.” Lacey showed her approval by tugging off her T-shirt and bra.

He maintained enough control to strip off his shirt before unzipping his pants, managing to sheath himself before dragging his lover back into his arms. The press of her naked skin against his felt like coming home.

“This floor won't be comfortable.”

She laughed, her voice husky with desire. “That'll be your problem. I plan on being on top.”

He didn't argue. It didn't matter which position they chose, as long as he was inside her soon. The two of them tumbled to the ground. If the rock was cold or uncomfortable, he quit noticing the second she presented her full breasts to him, demanding his attention.

As soon as he suckled one ripe, plump nipple, she straddled his body, squirming and rocking her damp core against his cock. He splayed his hand on her ass, encouraging her to move faster and harder.

A few seconds later, she stopped. She stared down at him, her gaze hot and needy, her hair wild. “Barak, I want you inside me. Deep and hard.”

“Gladly.” He lifted her up enough for her to position herself so that he rested right at the entrance to her body. Then working together, she eased down until her body gloved him completely.

This time, when she rocked forward, they both moaned. He drew up his knees to support her as she put her hands flat on his chest and began a long, slow slide up and then down.

She was killing him. But he'd die happy.

He let her set the pace, enjoying the look of sensual power in her eyes. Her pretty breasts bounced with each motion, tempting him again. He cupped them with his hands, squeezing and kneading, loving the way they filled his hands.

“Harder,” she demanded.

He did as ordered, flicking his tongue over one nipple until he caught it with his teeth and lips. Lacey threw her head back, giving herself over to the rising tide of passion between them.

He was so big, filling and stretching her, fitting her so perfectly, unlike any other lover she'd ever had. She loved the way he looked at her with those pale eyes, as if she was the one woman in this world or his that could make him feel this way.

Neither of them showed a lick of sense by giving in to the urge to make love down here in the tunnels, but the need had been building between them since the moment she'd left his bed. But now wasn't for thinking, feeling was enough. And the feel of him was perfect. Hard, hot, demanding, and so careful of her.

Barak's watch beeped, startling a curse out of him.

“What's wrong?”

His laugh sounded frustrated. “I set the alarm so we didn't run out of time and trigger a rescue mission.”

“How much time do we have?”

He surprised her by flipping them so that he was on top. With a grin that was positively wicked, he leaned down and kissed her. “Just enough.”

Then he showed her how much could be accomplished by a very determined man in a short amount of time.

Devlin was waiting for them in the records room. “You cut it pretty close.”

“Someone destroyed some of the equipment. It took a while to salvage the pieces.” Barak held them out for Devlin to inspect.

“Son of a bitch!” he said in a burst of temper. Then, remembering Lacey was there, he apologized. “Sorry, Lacey.”

She looked at him as if he'd sprouted a second head. “Boy, Laurel's going to civilize you yet. Maybe she can work on Penn next.”

Barak watched in amazement as Devlin actually flushed. “No, she just reminded me that you deserve to be treated with more respect. Even though you grew up surrounded by Paladins, it's time we realize that you're not just one of the boys.”

Barak could offer firsthand testimony to that, but wisely kept that information to himself. If they'd been too blind to notice that they had a beautiful woman in their midst, that was their problem, not his.

Lacey shifted from foot to foot, Devlin's comment clearly making her uncomfortable. Barak understood. He'd had to redefine who he was the past few months, and it wasn't easy.

Devlin turned his attention back to the spider. “When did this quit working?”

“About two days ago. I'd have to look at my records back in the lab to give you an exact date and time if you need it.” Lacey stuck her hands in her back pockets, clearly unaware how that stance emphasized the generous curve of her breasts.

Devlin noticed, then glared at Barak for doing the same. “Call me as soon as you know. Then maybe I can do some checking of my own to see if anyone else was scheduled to be down there at that time.”

“Will do.”

Lacey started for the door on the far side of the records room. Barak dropped back a couple of steps, signaling Devlin to slow down a bit. When they were a few feet behind Lacey, he whispered, “That same Ben was in the tunnels recently. I can't tell you when, but his scent was near where we found the damage.”

Devlin nodded as the two of them hurried to catch up with Lacey before she reached the door. Barak moved past her to open it, taking the casing from her to carry up the stairs.

She gave him a look that warned him that his efforts to pass information to Devlin had not gone unnoticed. Too bad. The more she knew, the more likely she'd be at risk. Until they had some idea what Ben was up to and who he was working with, Devlin was right to keep things secret.

No doubt Barak was going to hear about it from Lacey, but maybe he could distract her—and he knew just how to do it. He couldn't wait.

Penn prowled the hallways, killing time until Barak showed up for their next lesson. He hated—
hated
—waiting at the best of times. Waiting for Barak only pissed him off more. At least the Other had called to let him know that he was running late.

And why?

Because Barak had taken Lacey back down in the tunnels again. Alone, just the two of them. Was Devlin crazy? At the very least, he should have sent a Paladin or two along as escort. But no, Bane trusted Barak to keep Lacey safe from both the humans and the Others.

Where did that make any sense?

And besides, who was going to protect Lacey from Barak? The whole situation made him sick. It was bad enough that she spent all her working hours hanging around with the bastard. Again, alone. What if that pale-eyed freak decided he wanted a human lover? Penn liked to think his sister had better sense than to trust the bastard, but from what he could tell, the women treated Barak like a stray they'd brought home, instead of the vicious killer he was under that thin veneer of civilized behavior.

Penn's hand strayed to the hilt of his sword, the need to fight riding him more than usual. He forced his hand back down to his side, doing his best to look calm and in control. Here, where he could run into a Handler or Regent, it was imperative that he not let his jitters show. No one was more aware than he that he was being observed, weighed, and judged.

As far as he knew, the jury was still out. He might still have a career with the Regents. The alternatives were unacceptable. Either they would ship him off to some cornfield somewhere away from the barrier to vegetate his life away, or they would execute him.

And that wouldn't kill just him but Lacey, too.

The sound of footsteps caught his attention, and his hand reaching for the hilt of his sword again. His opponent at last.

“You said a
little
late, Other. I don't like to be kept waiting.”

Barak sneered. “Like you have anything else to do. I was helping your sister piece together one of her machines.”

Damn, Penn hated the vision these words put in his head of the Other and Lacey, heads together, working on some fucking scrap of metal. “She did fine working on her own before you showed up.”