Virtually Hers (17 page)

What was Elena needing luck for? From his observation of her all these months, she’d rarely displayed any fear in all her challenges. The real woman underneath all that muscle and cockiness held secrets that he wanted to explore, but to do that, he had to find time outside the mission.

Elena’s voice interrupted his train of thought.
“
We’re here
,
”
she announced.
“
Are you with me?
”

A small smile curved his lips. She was always challenging him. She knew damn well he was with her. He could
feel
her awareness of him, her need and desire fueling that mental connection. She was frustrated, still reeling from wanting to come, and mad that even in the ether, she wanted him to continue caressing her.

He would never tell her but her feelings tortured him too. It was so tempting to just let go and let their mutual attraction take them to the ultimate conclusion, but he knew if they did that the mission wouldn’t be completed for a long, long time because they would just be having one long bout of virtual sex. Not that he wasn’t interested in exploring
that
with her.

But the urgency of finding the mystery intruder reminded Jed to always put the job first. The danger the intruder represented was real. He knew there was a correlation there with Elena’s problem, but he hadn’t been able to connect the dots yet, and he was determined to. Something told him that if he didn’t, the problem was going to get bigger than just a need for sexual gratification as a side effect for Elena down the road.

So, no climax for them both till he had more control of himself. He could just imagine how absorbed they would be in each other’s senses that he would put their safety at risk.

“I hate it when you’re silent like that
,
”
Elena interrupted again.
“Stop teasing!”

Jed sensed her thinking about his hand inside that scrap of thong, wondering whether he was still playing with her.

Teasing Elena was becoming a habit.
“I’m changing the program over here,”
he told her,
“so when you come back, you’ll be bent over in a special chair and I’ll be inside you, fucking you senseless
.
”

Her response was spontaneous. Intense. The sensation of being turned over and taken from behind…he realized immediately that he was catching her visual thought and her excitement made him hard as a rock. And in that instant of joint mental concentration, his inner vision “opened” and he began to clearly see her surroundings, what she was looking at.

The first sense was the smell of antiseptic in the air.

“Bastard. One day, I’m going to tie you up and make you my love slave for a week.”
She sounded breathless.
“But I can feel your connection, like you’re part of me
.
”

Another interesting development. She hadn’t said that before.
“
I’m more or less having the same experience as before.
”
Except that he really wanted to make love to her even more so than before.
“
Antiseptic, Elena?
”

“Yeah. I’m getting out of the car. Moving down this long tunnel. Corridor, not tunnel. Doors on left and right. Okay, antiseptic smell is definitely everywhere. Medical place?”

Here she was in charge. He could only follow her. He could only absorb everything she saw and felt, and nothing more. It was both exhilarating and frustrating.

“
Look to the left and right so I can examine the walls and doors,
”
he told her. They were so new at this that she was forgetting that he was there as another pair of eyes, to see whether he could recognize places, faces, and objects. Walls might hold no interest to a remote viewer who was immersed in the experience—and in his position, he understood the compelling need to be an explorer in a different world because he, too, wanted to do just that—but he mustn’t lose sight that he was also here to protect her and they had come to this place, wherever they were, because the intruder was here.

Walls could tell him a lot. A well-decorated wall, for instance, would suggest some place entirely different from a bare white one. If this was a medical facility, there would be clues.

“The walls? Why…oh, okay, never mind, got you.”

Jed examined the walls through her eyes. Bare so far. Some wood paneling, but nothing ornate. Nothing to clue one in about their whereabouts. Light in the far corner. There was a window at the end of the hall.

“Let’s look outside,”
she said.
“Maybe there’ll be more clues. All building corridors look alike to me.”

Slow down, Elena.
But he chose not to say that.
“
All right, but keep looking at the walls.
”

“Yes, sir
.
”
Her voice was lightly mocking.
“You know, I could just say, Oh look, surveillance cameras! But I figure that’s not a problem for us
.
”

He smiled inwardly.
“
I can feel your sarcasm.
”
Along with a bunch of other interesting feelings. He was beginning to discern the different layers of her emotions.

“Oh, yeah? Then tell me why I don’t like the feel of this place. Can you sense that?”

He could tell she was curious. He tried to explain it to her in words.
“Elena, I’m awash with all your emotions. I can’t help but sense what you’re feeling, but it’s more complicated than that. For example, when you mentioned ‘tunnel’, I was sensing the same thing almost instantaneously, and so I have to wait for your conclusion that we’re in a corridor of sorts before I actually ‘feel’ that too
.
”

“
In other words, you have to wait for me to make sense of my senses
.”

Satisfaction seeped into his consciousness. Not his. Hers. He smiled again.
“Right. So, I can feel your discomfort but it’s mixed up with your physical discomfort too. You have to direct me, Elena, or I’m going to be just as lost as you are
.
”

“Interesting. You must really hate it then, not being in control
.
”

He’d learned to be very, very careful when practicing NOPAIN on a GEM operative. They fought right back with the same stuff.
“Slight correction. You mean, not being totally in control. I still have you comfortably arranged under me right now, as a matter of consideration.”
He so enjoyed the way they kept each other on their toes
. “Elena, your holding your breath like that makes me dizzy.”

“I don’t know why I bother talking to you. You’re always trying to manipulate me
.
”

“And you want to test me,
”
he pointed out, amused. Like a puppy. But he’d better not bring up that comparison or that would really get her going.
“
You’re in charge of where to go right now. Take us to the window. Let’s see what’s out there.
”

“Enough about the silly blank walls, huh? Here we are. I see lots of green. Wow. Nice yard, mamma
.
”

Jed sucked in his breath.
“Look around more. Can we go through the window and float outside?”

It couldn’t be. He caught a panoramic visual of the “yard” as Elena scanned the area. Something went very still inside of him. Not a yard. He had been here before. Twenty years ago, he’d stood right next to that fountain and had taken a photo in front of it.

Chapter Twelve

Remote viewing was all about the senses. No matter how they tried to scientifically explain the process, with their “theta waves” and “bilocation”, there was no description that Helen knew of that would do justice to the strange and wondrous mix of perceptions of the remote viewer.

The first sensation of disengagement, when in that altered state of consciousness, another part of her arose from deep inside. She could feel it like a door opening and her walking through it.

And then…yeah. Bilocation. Whatever.

That one word didn’t describe the bloom of colors rushing past as the world seemed to melt and reform. There was no sense of space and time. If there was such a thing as going into another dimension, this would be it.

Then, everything slowed down and she’d suddenly be aware that she was at the agreed target location. Not physically, no, but her essence was there. Her former instructors at the CIA had called it “phantom form”. Fancy name. But it still didn’t accurately describe this feeling. More like, self-projection. A mixture of falling, floating, and flying. The colors. Oh man, the brilliant colors that slowly took shape into the location.

Then there was the physical freedom in movement. One could be as “solid” in the ether as one wanted, or one could just pass through objects like a ghost. Her race car was her thought-vehicle; she could use it to speed or slow down, giving her the ability to see certain events in slow motion. That was dynamite cool, especially in the midst of striking colors.

The sensations were powerfully addictive. Floating through air, rushing from the top of a mountain to its foot, trying to distinguish all the colors and smells as they first formed—all these experiences tempted Helen to try doing new things. Like hovering outside a window fifty, sixty feet from the ground. It didn’t even take more than a mental effort and she was learning how to do it quickly and efficiently.

Much better than looking at walls. She understood Hades’ point in doing it, but they were using her eyes and she wanted to look out the window. In some ways, it was tough “sharing” senses. He couldn’t see without her seeing for him. She saw nothing but walls, and had no idea whether he saw anything different. Besides, it became boring looking at the blankness when the sunlight beckoned. She didn’t like the vibes emanating from these walls at all, if walls could have vibes.

“Well? Do you see anything familiar?”
Helen asked. The sunlight was strong but not too warm. The yard below looked well manicured, the kind that took a maintenance crew to take care of it.
“It’s nice out here. Doesn’t feel like a residence, though
.
”

“It’s not a residence
.
”

Helen frowned. Was there a slight tension in his voice? It was impossible to tell when the conversation was being held in one’s head. Nonetheless, she felt an edginess that didn’t come from her.

“Je…Hades?”

That silence again. She reached for him inwardly. Blankity-blank. She sniffed. Really, why couldn’t she read his mind like he could hers? It would make communication with this man so much simpler.

“Actually, I’d imagine it would complicate it even more, what with you arguing and analyzing my thoughts and me doing the same with yours
.
”

There was no mistaking his lazy amusement. Helen stuck her tongue out and bit back a quick rebuttal. The two of them having sex and anticipating each other’s needs…nope, not going to go there. Still, she was sure he felt the thrill of pleasure that went through her at
that
particular thought, even though he didn’t say anything this time.

The fountain kept drawing her attention, so she followed her impulse, willing her shadow form to stand in front of it. The splash of the water became louder and the surface shimmered with gleaming shadow and reflected sunlight.

“Why did you choose to stand at this spot?”

“
I don’t know. It was calling to me.”

Another pause.

“That’s a strange way to put it. Is there a reason why it called to you?”

Helen shrugged. The man asked impossible-to-answer questions.
“I depend on my senses a lot when I remote view, remember? I think I get pulled to a certain location because it’s important to the universal agreement, which is, in this particular case, the location of our intruder. Perhaps he was just standing here. Or perhaps something happened here that was very important to him and I locked on to it, it’s hard to say
.
”

“Something happened here that was very important…interesting
.
”

His voice was a soft murmur, as if his mind was somewhere else. Again, she felt that slight tension—imperceptible, but because it wasn’t hers, she caught it—and then, a distancing, as if two bubbles floated together, touched, and then parted in opposite directions. The feelings were fleeting, but definitely powerful enough to seep into her consciousness.

“I think the intruder is very attached to this spot
,
”
Helen said, looking around at the beautiful yard.
“This place means something to him
.
”

“Do you think so?”

She frowned. How come he wasn’t giving her directions to look at? He hadn’t shown any recognition of the place when they were in that corridor, but out here, he hadn’t even attempted to check out the landmarks, or look back at the building.

“Hades?”
She cocked her head.
“Do you know this place?”

“Turn around. Look at the building straight on,”
he told her. After a pause, he added,
“Now scan it slowly from left to right so I can see the entire place
.
”

She did so. The main structure was magnificent, with four columns in the front that stood at least two stories high. Its architecture gave its façade a Greek look, with ivy climbing all the way up on parts of its walls. She looked at the roofline, then let her eyes travel from left to right.

“That’s why I didn’t recognize it
,
”
Hades said quietly.

“So you know this place?”

“Yes. Where we came from must be a new wing. Look at the newer structure to the right. It’s an addition
.
”

Helen studied the building. Yeah, that part had cleaner lines and looked different from the rest of it.

“I agree. The roof shingles are different. They look like a different brand,
”
she noted. Another wave of amusement slid subtly through her and she briefly closed her eyes to savor the maleness in it. When she focused intently like that, she found that she could discern feelings that weren’t hers. This was too cool.
“What’s so funny?”

“And since when did you become an expert in roof tiles? I didn’t know GEM operatives were assigned roofing jobs. Did you have to translate for some roofers’ treaty?”

The amusement became more pronounced at each question. Helen grinned back.

“You mean you guys didn’t have to learn roofing and carpentry during spy training? Tsk. COMCEN’s spy courses need revamping
.
”
She looked at the roof line again.
“My next-door neighbor did his roof one summer and it just so happened that I was on vacation, so I helped him. He’s a contractor, so I got to learn a couple of things about building.”
She patted her hair airily, and added,
“Just call me supersoldier-spy builder
.”

“What about race cars? Flyboy tells me you know quite a bit about them. Another vacation friendship?”

Now it was her turn to be amused.
“Hades,”
she said teasingly,
“are you probing me? You know T. has taught me better than that. You’ll have to be a bit more subtle
.
”

Had he been asking Flyboy about her? Or was Flyboy reporting back to him? There was a difference. And why did he bring this up in the middle of their RV session?

“I just find your tidbits about your past fascinating, that’s all. But back to our current mission, yes, I do know the location of this place. I’ve been here before the addition of that new wing where we came from. Since our universal agreement brought us inside that building, I’m assuming that our intruder comes from there.”

“You going to tell me where this place is?”
Helen scanned around again.
“No one around. The antiseptic smell from that wing suggests that it’s a medical center of some sort but it seems an awfully quiet place to be one.”

“It was a different kind of medical center when I last saw it. I’d call it a place for convalescing. I’ll give you more details later. Just to make sure, go through the front. It’s probably going to be different from the way I remember it but the layout should look familiar.”

“All right.”

The entranceway looked like someone’s grand mansion, its brick façade laid in a geometrical design. The double doors, however, seemed out of place, made of glass and with the modern look that reminded her of a bank. Her phantom form floated through. The inside was very pretty, decorated in warm colors, with plush sofas and chairs scattered around. She noticed a huge fireplace and even a piano. There was no one there.

“Convalescing, huh?”
She glanced around curiously.
“It’s a very nice peaceful scene, but how come I feel constricted and even…hmm…pain? I don’t like it
.”

“You feel pain?”
Surprise tinged his voice.
“Interesting. The place looks more or less the same. Different furniture. There used to be a counter there to check in visitors but that’s gone now. Look to your right. There should be a wall at the far end. Tell me what you see.”

She was getting very curious about the place. Hades seemed to know a lot about it. She had questions, but decided to leave them till later. In remote viewing, a monitor guided for information, not questions, and it was her job not to contaminate her perception with too many personal details. If done incorrectly, the remote viewer would muddle up what she was viewing with what she thought her monitor wanted her to see.

The wall was there, just as he’d told her. A fleeting sensation invaded her, too vague to define. Again, she had the feeling that it wasn’t hers.

“I see pictures. Photos of various sizes. Let me focus on them.”
The wall was filled with numerous photo frames, too many to really take it all in. Mostly men standing around what she assumed were various rooms in this building. Some were taken outside.

“Way to the right, about tenth row, around there. What do you see?”

Helen obediently counted. The frames weren’t arranged in neat rows, so she stopped about where she thought the ninth or tenth row was, then looked carefully at each photo in that area. Her hand flew to her mouth. Her eyes widened as she drew closer to a black and white photo.

“Holy batshit. Is that you?”
The silence that followed was telling. Helen cocked her head, all her attention on the photo, taking in the fountain, the familiar tall hedge in the background. The
young boy
standing in front of it, with another older man. She momentarily forgot their little role playing game, her voice a mere whisper.
“Jed?”

The silence was maddening. That feeling that wasn’t quite hers slid through her being again, like the smooth side of velvet, just enough to tease but not enough to discern exactly what it was. She just knew it was not her feeling it, that she had invaded some private space.

Tough. He’d better get used to it. He certainly had no qualms doing it to her.
Her
tidbits about her past fascinating? Well, ditto his tidbits.

She put her hands on her hips and glared at the picture, as if that would convey her irritation to the man she was addressing.
“You’re not going to say that’s not you, because I’m not believing that. Brother? Cousin? Son?”

“That’s me. Go back to the first place we started at. I’m curious now what it’s for
.
”

Oh, wait a minute. He wasn’t going to leave it just like that, was he? No explanation of this photo at all?
“Jed…”

“Not now. We’re looking for an intruder, Elena, not taking a tour
.
”

She bristled at his sudden coolness. He had mentally shut a door and she
felt
him doing it. It was like a slap to her face. She considered going somewhere else in this building to look for answers to the new questions in her head. Like, what is this place to Jed McNeil? That it was the same place the intruder was at made it doubly tempting. Was Jed—

A gasp escaped her lips as a sudden image loomed up in her mind; she was lying on her back in her quarters at Center. She saw a pair of male hands tear the thong she was wearing and her legs were firmly parted. She was seeing herself through his eyes.

She heard him say something softly and the sudden swift kick of desire overtook her senses. How was this possible?

Can’t
.
Think
.
His hands were gentle but insistent, his fingers enjoying the slick feel of her. She tumbled against the wall as pleasure spiraled uncontrollably. He was deliberately letting her see what he was doing to her.

What did he say before that? What did he say?
Some part of her urged her to try to remember. But she couldn’t focus.

“All I have to do is open my eyes, Elena, and do this to get your attention back to me. I need this connection. Every time you start analyzing, I lose focus here
.
”
His voice in her head took on a silky edge.
“We’re still new at this. It’s the only way I know to make you stop thinking.”

The sensations were all hers now. Every shudder of pleasure. She couldn’t tell whether he was just sending her one of his fantasies or if he was really doing this in virtual reality. It didn’t matter. Her concentration came back to him, to his hands and lips, everything.

“I want to be inside you, but I can’t. Not now or we’ll both be mind-fucking. Take us back to the first building, Elena. Open your eyes
.
”

His voice was seductive, like a man with sex on his mind. She knew better. Yet her body shivered in delight at the thought of mind-fucking… The smell of antiseptic overwhelmed her. She opened her eyes. They were back at that other place. She wrinkled her nose. Nothing like antiseptic to stop a good mind-fuck.