Embracing Silence (12 page)

“Stay close.” Tienan wanted to tuck Silence under his arm where he knew she’d been safe. But her stiff posture told him now was not the time to press his luck. He was going back to the rebel compound. He’d have time to talk to her there. He’d make her listen, even if he had to kidnap her yet again.

Adrian passed in front of him, his eyes flashing a warning. “Don’t make me regret this.”

Ignoring the implied threat, Tienan moved to the stairs. “Put your feet exactly where I put mine.”

Silence felt as though she’d been turned inside out. Men were insane. She’d thought that for years, but she finally had proof. Adrian was acting totally out of character. One minute he was shooting Tienan, the next he was inviting him back to their compound.

And Tienan. Well, she didn’t really want to think about him. Not yet. As though he sensed her gaze, the object of her thoughts turned his head and glanced at her. “You okay?” She nodded. He stared at her a moment longer before returning his attention to leading them out of this crumbling building.

He moved like a cat, all sleek muscle and strength. Almost seeming to glide down the stairs. Silence moved more carefully, testing each step before putting her weight on it. She didn’t care that Tienan had just walked on it.

Her legs felt like jelly and her insides were still quivering from the fall. It might be a cliché, but her entire life had flashed before her eyes. She could still hear the crack of the wood, feel the nothingness beneath her feet. Shivering, she wrapped her arms tighter around the bundle of blankets she carried. The world had simply disappeared from beneath her feet, leaving nothing to support her.

She could still see the disbelief stamped on Tienan’s face. Hear his cry as he lunged toward her. She still had no idea how he’d caught her. But he had. His grip had been unbreakable, determination emanating from the very fiber of his being.

Was it because he cared about her? She’d like to think so but was no longer certain. Regardless of what he thought of himself, he was a good man. A hard man. A dangerous man. A man capable of killing without a single regret. But underneath that was a man with a strict code of honor. He wouldn’t let her die. Not if he could help it.

Still, he’d put himself at risk for her. That had to count for something.

And she was grasping at straws. He’d saved her because it was instinct. Nothing more. If he had an alternative motive, perhaps it was because saving her would put Adrian in his debt.

She nibbled her bottom lip as she watched Tienan carefully climb over a pile of rocks, his movements sure and graceful. The man looked as good from behind as he did from the front. He had the finest butt she’d ever seen.

Obviously, she was losing her mind. Shaking her head, she moved her gaze upward. That helped but not much. His shoulders were broad and strong but not too bulky.

Shivering, she clutched the blankets even tighter. Her shoulder and arm ached. She felt cold and hot at the same time and her body wouldn’t stop vibrating.

“It’s the adrenaline crash.” Adrian wrapped his arm around her and hugged her. “Just let me know if you feel weak. I’ll carry you.”

“I’m fine.” She reached up and patted his hand where it rested on her shoulder. There was no way she’d let him carry her. She’d been through this before during battles with the security police. All she could do was ride it out until they got back to safety. Then she could crash in her bunk for a few hours. A shower and a good meal would straighten her up and bring her back to her normal self.

“Everything okay?” Tienan was beside her, looking concerned. She ignored the warm tingles on her skin as his arm brushed against hers.

“Everything is perfect, except for the fact that there are security police combing the outer city for you, someone breached your security, you’ve been shot and I almost plummeted several floors to my death.” She tried to inflict sarcasm in her voice but was very afraid she ended up just sounding pathetic. She took a deep breath and tried to find calm. “I suggest we debrief at a later date, gentlemen. Right now, we need to get moving.” That sounded much better. Calm. Competent. Tough.

Tienan whirled around and, once again, led the way. In minutes they were on the street. Both men were totally focused on their surroundings, their intensity palpable. Their eyes never rested as they scanned up and down buildings and alleyways. Every now and then, one of them would cock their head to one side. The other would immediately stop and listen. She had no idea what they heard. She heard nothing beyond the normal sounds of the outer city.

They kept to the back lanes and the shadows as they worked their way toward the compound. Silence knew the way so well she could find it in her sleep. Because she didn’t need to concentrate so much, she had time to think.

Alpha.
What did that mean exactly? Yes, Tienan had given her the short version of the story. If she believed it, he and Adrian and others had been created in a lab and reared to be assassins. Powerful weapons to be aimed and discharged by the General, mostly in political assassinations or those who opposed the Ruling Council. It was terrifying to even think about.

What kind of toll did that take on a man?

It had taken Adrian years to trust anyone and, even now, she was the lone person he trusted. He kept everyone else at arm’s length. Of course, she was no better. Life on the streets had taught her the brutal reality of life. You had to look out for yourself because no one else was going to do it.

But Adrian had. And so had Tienan. Adrian had saved her life when she was a child, giving her a place in the world, a family and a purpose. Tienan had wormed his way into her heart so fast she hadn’t been able to stop him. Like the warrior he was, he’d found her weakness and exploited it to the max.

Well, too bad. She’d learned her lesson. It wasn’t too late to harden her heart and repair the damage he’d done to it.

Liar.
She ignored the soft voice in the back of her mind that knew better. After everything that happened, she still loved him. Would always love him.

That was her burden to bear. She’d get over it. Eventually.

Tienan was too much like Adrian. Too much of a loner. He didn’t trust her. Had immediately jumped to the conclusion she’d betrayed him. He’d even kidnapped her again just to question her.

She shoved aside all the heated memories of them making love again. No! Having sex. That’s what it was. Nothing more.

A sound pierced her thoughts and she froze, sliding deeper into the shadows. She’d allowed her mind to drift too far, depending on the men’s skills to warn her of any danger. Stupid. That was just plain stupid. Not paying attention could get them all killed.

The streets were always a perilous place to be. Patrols of security police, as well as various groups of criminals, roamed the outer city, always on the lookout for easy pickings.

It was different beyond the boundaries of the outer city. People had traveled there years ago in search of a better life and some of them had managed to get a foothold on the barren land. They’d worked tirelessly for years to find ways to make it a home that would support them. There were actual communities where people worked together to raise animals and crops. Where they spun cotton and wool to make clothing. Anything that was needed from candles to herbal medicine, they made it.

The communities were closed to outsiders, for the most part, and heavily fortified against raiders and thieves. Armed groups of men occasionally ventured out from the communities to trade with representatives from other communities and those who came from the outer city to purchase food and goods. The security police rarely ventured that far, having their hands full with the Resistance and those who called the outer city home. She sometimes wondered what it must be like not to have to live in fear every single day.

A movement caught her eye, pulling her from her thoughts. A child scampered out from a doorway. Froze and then took off like a jackrabbit. Silence wanted to call the child back, but it was too late. She couldn’t even tell if it was a boy or a girl. And even if she had called out, the child wouldn’t have come. She put the child’s age at around seven or eight. Old enough to have learned to stay away from anyone you didn’t know.

Sighing, she glanced at Adrian, who was watching the shadows where the child had disappeared. He turned, saw her watching him and shrugged. She wasn’t fooled. She could see the despair in his eyes. The lost children always hit him the hardest. Perhaps because he remembered when he was one. When they both were.

Tienan was a silent wraith behind her. He hadn’t said a word, but she knew he hadn’t missed the child, or their reaction. “We need to move.” He kept his voice low but she could hear him perfectly. He was so close his breath made the hair on the back of her neck flutter against her skin.

Her nipples pebbled, brushing against the thin fabric of her top. She was suddenly very glad for her coat and the bundle of blankets she was carrying. It made it easier to pretend she was unaffected by his nearness.

Adrian flowed down the alley on silent feet and Silence followed him. With every step she took, she was very aware of the large man following close behind her.

Chapter Eight

“Take it easy on that shoulder for a week or two.” The doctor washed his hands in a basin of water before drying it with a threadbare towel of indeterminate color. The towel might have looked grungy, but it was clean. Doc Smith, as he called himself, was meticulous with cleanliness. Tienan appreciated that.

“Thanks, Doc.” The doctor had made quick work of stitching the flesh wound. It had bled quite a bit, but it hadn’t done any real damage, for which he was thankful. This wasn’t the first time he’d been shot in that same shoulder.

Doc Smith shook his head. “I don’t know why I bother. You’ll ignore my good advice and do whatever it is you want to do. Just keep the damn thing clean and don’t tear the stitches. I don’t want to have to waste any medicine on you. Antibiotics are in short supply.”

“No problem. I heal fast and I don’t get infections.”

The doctor gave a bark of laughter. “I can believe that. You look the type to tell everyone what to do and expect them to fall in line. Even yourself.”

Tienan bit back a grin as he yanked on the clean shirt that had been left for him. “Like I said, I don’t get sick.” He knew that the wound was already healing, the skin fusing together at an accelerated rate. It was one of the perks of being an Alpha.

A heavy thump sounded on the door a second before it was shoved open. The man standing in the doorway was about five-ten and built like a brick wall. His neck and arms were thick with muscle, but Tienan knew there was more to the man than that. The intelligent gleam in his dark eyes was unmistakable. Derrick was Adrian’s second-in-command. You didn’t get a position like that by being stupid.

“You ready?”

Tienan slid off the table where the doctor had performed the minor surgery. “Yeah.”

“Adrian wants to see you.” Turning, he walked away, not looking back to see if Tienan was following.

Tienan arched a brow. The doctor saw his expression and laughed again. “Adrian gives the orders and expects everyone to do exactly as he says.” He tucked his tools back in his battered leather bag and closed it tight. “And since he’s always right, they do. Plus, he’s not a man you want to cross.” The doctor gave the friendly warning as he headed out the door.

“Neither am I, Doc. Neither am I.” Grabbing his jacket and pack, he strode out of the room. Derrick was waiting at the far end, a frown on his face. Sighing, Tienan gave in to the inevitable and started toward him.

He and Adrian needed to talk, to establish some kind of ground rules for their association. They were both Alphas, but they weren’t friends, and that made for a dangerous situation. They were both natural leaders, not followers, and would butt heads if they weren’t careful. It was inevitable.

What Tienan really wanted to do was find Silence. She’d slipped away when he was led to the room that acted as their infirmary. He wanted to take her in his arms and strip her naked just to make certain she hadn’t been hurt in the fall. She said she was fine, but he wouldn’t expect her to admit to a physical weakness. She had too much pride for that.

Then he wanted to spread her silky, white thighs and drive himself into her hot pussy. He sucked in a breath as his cock jerked, growing larger by the second. He could almost feel her hot, damp sheath gripping his shaft tight. He’d fuck her until she screamed with pleasure, flooding his cock with her juices. Only then would he let himself come.

“This way.” Derrick jolted him out of his pleasant daydream, a sharp reminder for him to pay attention to his surroundings. He wasn’t too worried. His subconscious was always on alert for any threat. Still, he needed to get his head back in the game.