Spy High (44 page)

Karma was already pulling a jacket on.
“I’ll come with you.” He turned to Moonbeam. “Guide us.” He pushed
the radio earpiece into his ear and Moonbeam nodded and did the
same, her gaze riveted to the screen.

I turned and ran.

Karma kept pace with me easily. My
ankle jabbed with every step and my breath caught in sobs of pain
and fear.

As we passed the main building, Karma
reached out to tug my sleeve. “Go left,” he said, and we crossed
the open space and plunged into the undergrowth.

“Should be about fifty yards straight
ahead,” Karma panted, but I had already spotted the bulky figure
lying on the ground.

“Arnie!” Tears mixed with the rain on
my face as I charged toward him. “
Arnie!
”

He jerked as if woken from sleep but he
didn’t stand up. His torso looked oddly misshapen, as though he was
holding his jacket tented over some wound too painful to touch.

“Hey, darlin’, easy now,” he warned as
I fell to my knees beside him.

“Arnie, what’s wrong?” I ran frantic
hands over his head and shoulders.

“Nothin’, darlin’… hey,” he said as if
noticing for the first time that I was sobbing with fear and
exertion. He leaned up on one elbow, still moving slowing and
carefully. “What’s wrong? What happened?” He wrapped his free arm
around me.

“I thought I lost you.” Beyond dignity
or even a modicum of self-control, I threw my arms around his neck
and blubbered into his rain-soaked shoulder. “I thought… I lost…
you.”

“Shhh, darlin’, I’m right here an’
everythin’s fine. I tried to call ya but I didn’t get an answer.
Kane said he’d left ya safe in the main buildin’, so after we
nailed that last guy I went to look for Peaches. I stopped by the
buildin’ for ya but ya were gone already. Sorry ya were scared. I
figured I’d give Kane a chance to get back from droppin’ off the
truck an’ then I was gonna call him an’ let him know I’d be back in
a bit.”

“We tried to call you,” I babbled,
shivering uncontrollably in his embrace. “Why didn’t you answer?
Why are you lying on the ground?”

“Aw, darlin’, I’m sorry.” He kissed my
forehead, a gentle touch of lips and whiskers. “I musta missed the
vibration ‘cause I had the phones in my jacket pocket an’ I was
usin’ my jacket for this.” He raised the jacket into the odd tented
shape I’d seen earlier.

Smiling, he nodded toward it and I
sucked in a quivering breath and managed to relinquish my hold on
him long enough to lean in and peer underneath.

Laughter and tears choked me, and I
pressed my forehead against his shoulder and gave in to both. When
I was capable of speech again, I pulled out the phone and punched
Kane’s speed dial.

At his tense reply I said, “It’s okay,
John, I found him. You were right, he was just looking for Peaches.
Go back to my tent and get some rest. We’ll be along soon.”

Several yards down the path, Karma
caught my eye and melted into the forest with a smile.

Hellhound didn’t even notice him. His
enthralled gaze was still directed under his jacket.

I lifted a corner of the jacket again
and smiled at the sight of Peaches and her brand-new family nestled
safe and dry against his chest.

“I’m really sorry, darlin’,” Hellhound
said for approximately the tenth time as we made our slow way
toward the main building. He cradled Peaches and her kittens tented
in his jacket, apparently oblivious to the rain soaking him to the
skin.

“I really fucked up,” he added. “If I
hadn’t shot Ratboy, none a’ those assholes woulda attacked in the
first place. An’ then I just about gave ya a heart attack into the
bargain. I’m really sorry,” he finished again.

“It’s okay, Arnie.” I tightened my arm
around him, partly to reassure myself that he was alive and partly
to take some weight off my throbbing ankle. “If you hadn’t shot
Ratboy, who knows what he might have done to Nichele? He wasn’t
rational. He didn’t want to negotiate, he just wanted to cause as
much pain as possible. You likely would have had to shoot him no
matter what.”

Hellhound blew out a breath. “Yeah,
you’re prob’ly right. But I wasn’t thinkin’ straight. I saw him
grab Peaches an’ I just lost it.” His arms curled protectively
around the purring bundle. “What kinda fucked-up sicko’d wanna hurt
a little pregnant cat?”

There wasn’t a good answer to that, so
I didn’t offer one.

“When I found her, I thought she was
hurt bad,” he went on, reliving the moment with a shudder. “I was
out in the woods walkin’ an’ callin’, an’ I heard this little meow.
She was all curled up, soakin’ wet an’ shakin’. I got down real
slow, didn’t wanna scare her, but she never even moved, just kept
lickin’ herself an’ her sides were goin’ in an’ out…”

He walked on in silence for a few
paces. “I was sorry I’d killed him then,” he said flatly. “I wanted
to wake him up from the dead an’ make him suffer.”

I shivered at that cold implacable
voice. This was the part of him he’d never let me see. Even though
I had known it was there, meeting the killer face to face chilled
me.

“So I’m just as fuckin’ sick as him,”
Hellhound finished, and the raw pain in his voice wrenched my
heart.

“No, Arnie, you’re not,” I said softly.
“Anybody who’d lie down in the rain to keep a cat and kittens
dry-”

“Anybody who’d put an animal’s life
before a man’s,” he interrupted, “…is fucked up.”

I said the only thing that came to my
mind.

“That wasn’t a man.”

He grunted, but didn’t argue. “So when
I figured out she was havin’ her kittens, I was afraid to move
her,” he went on. “She’d just finished gettin’ everybody all
cleaned up an’ dried off when ya got there.”

“Well, she’s fine now, thanks to you,
and so are her kittens,” I said. “Let’s put her in the cat house
for tonight. If she wants them somewhere else she’ll move
them.”

Inside the small room furnished with
carpeted perches and cushions, we chose a spot tucked away in the
corner. Hellhound crouched to bring his armload level with the
padded basket and I lifted Peaches into it.

Squeaks from the tiny blind kittens
made her trill an anxious response, and I hurriedly transferred the
motes of fur into the basket along with her. A couple of the other
commune cats blinked sleepy eyes at us, and Peaches hissed a
warning at one that approached too closely.

Hellhound stepped back, pulling on his
jacket with a sigh of relief. “Thanks, darlin’,” he said. “I’d’a
been afraid to touch ‘em. They’re so little.” He stared down at the
basket, a wondering smile touching his lips. “They’re no bigger’n
my finger. Fuckin’ amazin’.” He passed a gentle hand over Peaches’
deflated side. “Goodnight, little momma-cat. Take good care a’ your
babies.”

We turned together for the door, and I
slipped my hand into his. “You’re a good cat-dad.”

He chuckled. “That’s the only kinda dad
I ever wanna be.” Then he sobered, watching me limp out the door.
“That ankle looks bad, darlin’.”

“It’s pretty sore,” I agreed. “I’ll
just lean on you a bit.”

“I got a better idea.” He grinned and
turned his back on me, extending his hands behind him. “Hop on. How
many years since ya had a piggy-back ride?”

I laughed. “You mean ‘how many
decades’.” I linked my arms over his shoulders and hopped up. “Put
me down when you get tired.”

He wrapped his hands under my thighs
and headed for the door. “Hell, darlin’, I humped a hundred-pound
ruck on marches just for fun. I can get ya to your tent without
even breakin’ a sweat.”

I leaned down to nibble his ear.
“Humping a ruck doesn’t sound very sexy. You should hump me
instead.”

“Helluva plan, darlin’.”

“But I’m going to need a rain check
tonight.” I laid my head on his shoulder with a sigh. “I’m so
bagged and full of stale adrenaline I feel like I’m going to
puke.”

He patted my ass. “If ya puke down my
neck you’re gonna owe me big.”

“Mm.” I slid my hands down his chest.
“I owe you big for this ride anyway. You’ll have to write me an
invoice.”

“I’ll get right on that.”

We rounded the last bend in the path
and I switched to thermal-only from force of habit, only to let out
a whimper of sheer despair at the sight of my cold dark tent.

“What, darlin’?” Hellhound
demanded.

“John’s gone…” My sluggish brain
registered the heat signature in Orion’s tent. “…oh, wait. Maybe
that’s him. Let me down.”

I limped over to Orion’s tent and
scratched on the flap. “John? Is that you in there?”

“Yes.” A moment later he poked his head
outside, followed by his flashlight beam. “Don’t stand out in the
rain. Come in.”

I beckoned to Hellhound and we both
ducked into the tent.

“What are you doing in here?” I asked.
“Did Orion want you to get something for him?”

“No.” Kane stared down at the spot of
light his flashlight made on the floor. “I’m going to sleep here
tonight. You two can take the bed in your tent.”

I glanced at Hellhound. He looked as
unhappy as I felt.

“John…” I reached for his hand. “I know
this might sound a little weird, but I really want both of you in
my tent tonight. Not for…” Heat rose in my face. “I’m not asking
for anything kinky, I just… I really need to have you both close.
To know you’re safe.”

His face softened. “Aydan, I
understand, but this will be better.” He met my gaze, his eyes dark
hollows in his bone-white face. “I haven’t slept in over
forty-eight hours,” he said gently. “I’ve been avoiding it because
I know I’ll have nightmares. When I do, I’ll wake up punching. You
could be seriously hurt. Just go to bed, the two of you, all right?
We’ll all sleep better that way.”

“No.” Hellhound’s rasp held a note of
finality. “Ya can take the cot in Aydan’s tent an’ we’ll use the
mattress if that’s the way ya want it, but ya ain’t goin’ through
this alone.” He gripped Kane’s shoulder. “Come on, Cap. Let’s
go.”

Kane hesitated and I thought he’d
refuse. Then he let out a breath and his shoulders sagged as though
they couldn’t bear the weight of his pain any longer.

“All right,” he said quietly. “Thank
you.”

In my tent he pulled the mattress pad
off the cot and laid it on the floor. At my raised eyebrow, he
explained, “It’s easier to start out on the floor than to fall out
of bed later. Besides, the cot’s too short.”

I nodded, feeling as though I was
swimming through syrup. Stifling a yawn, I took out one of the
burner phones and began to dial.

“Who ya callin’?” Hellhound asked. “Ya
know it’s four AM, right?”

“I know, but this is important…” I shut
up when Dave’s anxious voice came on the line.

“Dave’s Trucking, Dave speaking.”

“Hi, Dave, it’s Aydan-”

“What’s wrong?” he interrupted. “Is
Nichele okay? You need me to come out there?”

“Nothing’s wrong, and yes, I need you
to come. But not for a few hours,” I added hurriedly as rustling
and a thump emanated over the line.

“When? What’s happening? Is Nichele
okay?”

“Nichele’s okay,” I promised, hoping I
wasn’t lying. “But we had some activity here last night and I want
her safe with you. If you could be here by…”

I hesitated, trying to force my
exhausted brain into some useful calculation. Nichele never got up
early at the best of times, and she’d been drugged…

“…ten o’clock,” I decided. “And be
ready to drag her out of here kicking and screaming if
necessary.”

“That sounds bad,” he said
worriedly.

“It could have been. It wasn’t, and it
won’t be now, but…” I shut up before I could worry him any more.
“Everything’s fine and Nichele’s safe, I promise,” I said firmly.
“I’ll see you tomorrow at ten, okay?”

“’Kay…”

I could tell he wanted to demand
answers, but I was pretty sure he wouldn’t.

I was right.

“See you tomorrow, then,” he said, and
hung up.

“There’s a guy that ain’t gonna sleep
for the rest a’ the night,” Hellhound observed drowsily from the
mattress.

“Yeah.” I sighed and stowed the phone.
“I feel a little guilty about that, but I just want Nichele out of
here.”

Kane had bedded down, too, and I knelt
beside his pallet.

“Goodnight,” I murmured. Looking down
at his exhausted face on the pillow, I stroked his hair and leaned
over to kiss him. “You’re safe here. Don’t worry about having
nightmares. You won’t hurt anyone. Just let it go.”

“Thank you.” He pressed my palm against
his cheek and his eyelids slipped closed. “G’night…” The word
trailed off into a mumble, and I tucked the blanket around his
shoulders and rose.

Feeling a little odd about stripping
with both of them in the tent, I turned off my flashlight and
shivered out of my clothes in the darkness before sliding in next
to Hellhound’s warm bulk.

He tucked an arm around me and I laid
my head on his chest, soaking up his body heat and taking comfort
from the strong steady beat of his heart.

“Same goes for you, darlin’,” he
whispered. “Don’t worry about havin’ nightmares.”

I let out a long breath, feeling sleep
overtaking me already. “I never do… when you’re… here…” I mumbled.
“G’nigh…”

It felt as though I had barely closed
my eyes when a crash rocketed me up in bed, my heart trying to
escape my chest. Beside me, Hellhound bolted up and flicked on his
flashlight, capturing Kane’s dazed white face on the opposite side
of the tent. Blank-eyed, he flexed his fist, blood welling up from
a shallow gash in his knuckles. The remains of the cot lay broken
in the corner.

“John,” I said softly. “Wake up. You’re
dreaming. It’s just a dream. Wake up.”

He blinked and drew a shaky breath.
“Sorry.” He blinked a few more times. “I’m awake.” He grimaced. “I
told you this wouldn’t work. I’ll go and sleep in the other
tent.”