Seduced by the Storm (45 page)

He
stood, offered his hand, which she shook before taking a seat across the desk
from him.

"Faith
Black," he murmured, as he returned to his chair. "How is it that
we’ve never heard of you or your agency?"

"Perhaps
the British are more discreet than you Yanks, Mr…. O’Malley?"

He
smiled. "Call me Dev. We Yanks are a lot less formal too."

"I
assume you’ve been in touch with the British government?"

"They
don’t think we’re holding you for ransom, if that’s what you’re asking. The
director in charge of MI6’s TAG Division knows you’re here. I don’t think he’s
real happy we know about your operation, but he figures now that we do, we
might be able to come to some sort of mutually beneficial partnership."

"I’ll
need to speak with him. And with my partner, Paula."

"Of
course. I have a room set up for you in the guest quarters, complete with
video-conferencing equipment." He stood, and she came to her feet as well.
"We can discuss this more tomorrow, after you’ve gotten some rest."

"That’s
very generous. Especially considering…everything." He just stared at her
with his piercing gaze, and yeah, talk about awkward. "Speaking of
everything, how’s Wyatt?" she asked quietly.

"He’ll
be okay. Which is the reason you’re in my office instead of in a cell. And the
reason that when we tracked the motherboard to your headquarters we didn’t take
your agency down from the ground up."

Surprise
kept her silent for a heartbeat. How could they have countered TAG’s preventive
measures? She knew for a fact that her agency’s technology and procedures were
top-notch. "I appreciate your candor."

"Life
is too short to beat around the bush," he said, his voice gravelly and
low. He gestured to the door, where a tall man with a hypnotic gaze stood,
staring at Faith. "Trance will show you around the base and make sure
you’re delivered to your quarters. I’ll see you in the morning." Dev shook
her hand again. "I’m looking forward to working together."

Faith
was too. The trick would be avoiding Wyatt for the time she was here, because
working together hadn’t ended well for the two of them.

CREED
HAD BEEN FUNNY when Annika found him after deplaning the jet. He’d been in his
office at his department headquarters, and she’d pounced on him right there in
his chair. He’d assumed she wanted sex, but when she told him she wanted to
talk, he’d nearly fallen over. Well, he’d been acting overly dramatic, but
still. He’d been both shocked and pleased, and it had been his suggestion that
she go see Dev. It had been her idea to go together.

They
arrived at Dev’s office, and for a split second Annika considered having
Marlena buzz her in, but hey, not everything could change. Besides, she was
nervous, which had a tendency to make her pushy and demanding. She’d spoken
with Dev on the phone about the Wyatt mission, but their conversation had been
formal and professional. She hadn’t seen him in person since the day she’d
stomped off, so this was a little nerve-wracking.

Creed
remained in the waiting room as Annika barged into Dev’s office, where he was
at his desk, working on his computer.

"Hi,
Dev."

His
fingers froze. "Hi."

"I
know what you did."

He
frowned. Cleared his throat. Looked like shit. "I don’t know how." He
removed a file folder from his inbox and shoved it across the desk at her.

Confused,
she opened it, felt her heart stop at the sight of the photos inside. "Oh,
my God. Troy." The man she’d gone to Greece to kill was dead. A range of
emotions rolled through her, from shock to relief, and maybe even a little
anger that he’d died by a hand that wasn’t hers. Then again, had she killed
him, maybe she wouldn’t be in the place she was now, happy to be committed to
Creed and a life with him.

She’d
found peace with Creed, and somehow that peace had transferred to her entire
life. Just hours ago, on the jet with Faith, she’d wanted closure on her CIA
past, and she only now realized that she’d found it even before she saw the
pictures of the dead agent.

She
was free. Free of her past, free of the anger and hatred that had been with her
so long it almost felt like part of her.

"I…how…?
You did this?"

"That’s
not…Wait a second, you said you knew."

"Oh,
no. Not about that. I was talking about the other day. When you said all those
things to me." Before he could say anything, she moved around behind his
desk so she stood in front of his chair. "I know you didn’t mean anything
you said."

"Annika—"

"Shh.
Let me talk." She kneeled down and covered his hand with hers. "Thank
you. Thank you for saving me all those years ago. Thank you for taking care of
me since. And thank you for making me see that I belong with Creed."

He
blew out a forceful breath, and she realized he’d been holding it while she
spoke. "So you two are fine?"

"More
than fine."

"Thank
God." He stood and pulled her up with him, drew her into his arms. "I
just want you to be happy."

"I
am. I love you, Dev."

His
warm lips pressed a gentle kiss into the top of her head. "I love you
too."

Stepping
back just a little, she lifted her hand to his cheek. "I still want you to
call me. If you need anything. To talk. To hang out. Whatever."

"I
will. I’ll call both of you."

"Good."
She studied him for a moment, admired the strength in his face, the confidence
in his gaze. Yeah, he’d pick up the pieces Oz left behind and would be stronger
than ever. "I have to go to Creed now."

"Yes."

With
a final, affectionate smile, she pulled away. "You’re coming to our house
for Thanksgiving this year. Just FYI."

He
laughed as she left the office. Outside, Creed was waiting for her with open
arms. "Let’s go home."

Home.
That sounded like heaven. With ACRO, she’d always had a family, even if she
hadn’t realized it. But with Creed she had a home.

Wyatt
woke to warmth invading his body, Faith’s name on his lips and Amitola standing
over him.

It
was the first time Wyatt had felt warm in the past few hours, since he’d been
lulled into sleep by Amitola’s chanting.

"This
is an old Native American tradition. Healing hands."

"Thanks,
brother," Wyatt whispered. "I’ll take all the help I can get."

"A
woman hurt you."

"Yeah."

"You’ve
been mumbling her name in your sleep. Crying out for her. That means
something."

"Means
I’m fucked."

Amitola
actually laughed, a fluid, singsong sound. "We’re all fucked when it comes
to women, Wyatt. Especially once they invade our dreams." He paused.
"She’s already there."

Wyatt
drew a deep breath, and yeah,
yeah,
something had changed. "How can
I feel so peaceful and still be so angry?"

"You
have to confront the anger—and the person who did that to you," Amitola
said. "Your supervisor wants to see you. Can I send him in? He’s been
waiting."

"Yeah,
that’s cool." Wyatt took a long drink of water, drained the bottle as
Amitola left and Josh walked into the room, shutting the door behind him.
Halfway to the bed, he stuck out his hand for a shake, and before he knew it,
Wyatt was shaking Josh’s hand with his mind. Josh stared at his own hand and
shook his head slowly.

"Do
you know what this means, Wyatt? Do you know how rare this kind of telekinesis
is?"

"I
do now."

"We
have no experience in this. You’ve got a lot of work ahead of you. We can’t
send you back out into the field until we know how fully integrated it is—until
we’re sure you know how to control it, to use it properly." Josh stuck his
hands in his pockets. "I understand that the agent from The Aquarius Group
has the same power."

Wyatt
shook his head yes, and then no, because he knew what Josh wanted him to do.

"It’s
for your own good, Wyatt. Otherwise, it could take years before we truly know
what you can do. If this woman—"

"Faith,"
Wyatt said. "Her name is Faith."

"If
Faith can help you, it’s to your benefit."

"And
if I don’t get help from her?"

"Then
I’ll work with you, Wyatt—for as long as it takes. Your place is here, at ACRO.
You know that."

Wyatt
nodded, stood on shaky legs and went over to the window. He pressed his
forehead and palms against the cool glass for a few seconds, looked out at the
rolling hills and the fall foliage and realized that he didn’t feel as
off-kilter as he had before. His balance still wasn’t quite right, but the
earth wasn’t thrown off its axis either.

"Bring
Faith here to me, Josh."

THE
TOUR of the base was impressive. It was a sprawling, old military installation,
underutilized by at least half, but it was well kept, even boasting a pub, a
park and a baseball field.

As
Dev had promised, the driver of the shiny black Hummer had taken her all over,
showed her exactly why her tiny agency would have been crushed if she’d ever
taken on ACRO. Which, she suspected, was a large reason she was being given the
tour in the first place. Dev’s boastful assertion that they could have taken
her agency apart from the ground up hadn’t been an exaggeration. They could
squash her like a bug, and they wanted her to know it.

Christ,
these people ran an
animal
facility that was larger than her entire
estate. And the medical clinic, which they were entering now, could have held
half the TAG building inside it.

She
slid a glance at Trance. He was her driver and chaperone, though she got the
impression that his normal duties didn’t include playing tour guide. No doubt
Dev had chosen someone capable of handling her should the need arise.

Cunning
bastard. She couldn’t help but admire him.

TAG
and ACRO might both be playing for the good guys, but that didn’t mean each
agency wasn’t ultimately out for itself. She had to respect Dev for protecting
his interests and people. She was just relieved that Annika hadn’t drawn
babysitting duty again.

"Is
this the last stop?" she asked Trance, as they walked past the emergency
room and headed down a hall lined with patient rooms. She hoped so. Every
minute spent out on the base increased her risk of seeing Wyatt. She ached with
the desire to see him, but she couldn’t bear to see the hatred in his eyes
again.

"Yeah."

For a
tour guide, Trance wasn’t all that talkative. But he had the most amazing eyes.
When he looked at her, she felt a little of what a sheep must feel like in the
crosshairs of a border collie’s intense, hypnotic stare. Like Wyatt, Trance
could be a menace to women if he wanted to be.

Two
nurses nodded in greeting as they passed. Faith tried with Trance again.
"How many people work here?"

"No
clue." They exited the building through double doors in the rear and
walked a few meters to an old Victorian-style building whose sign marked it as
being a psychiatric unit.

I’ll
bet Wyatt doesn’t spend time here,
she thought with a pang. They traversed the halls, climbing to the third floor
and slowing at a door. Trance opened it, and instantly her self-preservation
instinct kicked in.

"Where
we are going?" she asked, refusing to step foot inside the room.

"I
have orders to bring you here." His voice was deep, commanding, and the
words were as unyielding as a stone wall.

A
chill ran up her spine. Maybe ACRO wasn’t going to play nice, after all. On
instinct, she tried to flood herself with her gift, but the power hovered
frustratingly out of reach. She’d attempted to summon it on the plane,
realizing when she failed that Annika had drugged her. It seemed that the drug
was still working.

"And
if I refuse?" She shifted her weight, readying herself for battle.

Trance
looked at her, the harsh lines of his jaw tensing, his pupils dilating and then
squeezing to a laserlike pinpoint. "You won’t."

"You
arrogant…" She trailed off, fascinated by the way he was looking at her.
Her mind sort of fuzzed out, and damned if she didn’t find herself walking
toward him as he walked backward into the room.

"Son
of a bitch," she murmured. She had enough presence of mind to know she was
going to kill him the moment she was free of this haze, but not enough to
actually break out of it.

It
wasn’t until she heard a low-pitched growl that she snapped out of the spell
she’d been under. "I’ll take it from here, man," Wyatt said, and
Faith’s legs buckled as the shock of surprise took her straight down.

WYATT
CAUGHT FAITH in his arms as she fainted. Trance crossed his arms in front of
his chest and kept his eyes trained on her.