Chapter 20

Hidden within the cavern that she and Rinehart had called home for nearly a day, Laura nibbled on a piece of beef jerky as Rinehart did the same. His clean-shaven military persona had roughened to a thin layer of stubble, which rasped across her skin in a way she had found decidedly erotic.

In the twenty-four hours they’d been hiding, Laura had worried often for her kids, and Rinehart had become her willing distraction. A distraction she had needed desperately to set aside the obstacles they faced outside these walls.

“What’s wrong?” Rinehart asked, drawing her out of her reverie. She noted he was studying her intently.

She shook her head. “Nothing,” she said, trying to mean it, but failing.

Looking unconvinced, Rinehart pressed. “Talk to me, Laura.”

She hesitated. They’d talked about so much locked inside these walls. About her work, about his past in the army and then in the FBI. She’d even opened up about how being different had affected her growing up. About feeling like an outcast. But Rinehart had held back, avoided certain subjects that seemed important for reasons she couldn’t pinpoint. About his transition into the Knights. All she knew, thus far, was that he was born in 1912 and had become a Knight when he was thirty-two.

With their escape planned for only a few hours later, Laura decided that now was the time to ask about this. “Will you tell me about becoming a Knight? About how it happened?” A shell-shocked expression flashed across his face, telling her how off guard she’d taken him, a second before he squeezed his eyes shut. Several seconds of silence followed before he slowly leaned back against the wall. Laura had the mental impression of him steeling himself for what was coming, and she found herself doing the same thing.

“I’d been thinking about leaving the FBI,” he said, finally, his voice low, monotone. “Frustrated over things I was asked to do that felt unnecessary. They weren’t about protecting Americans, but servicing certain interests that, frankly, I thought were corrupt.” He hesitated. “I was engaged to be married. A woman of society who wanted me to move into politics. Looking back, I know I never really wanted that. I simply wanted to make a difference in the world. My thoughts on the agency turned around when I was made agent-in-charge over a case that seemed important—taking down a radical group who planned attacks on our country. Of course, my fiancée wasn’t happy. We fought the night I was leaving for a sting operation in Mexico.” He hesitated, regret and guilt lacing his features. “I had eight good men with me, many with families, all looking to me for sound decisions. I was distracted, not myself at all.” He gritted his teeth, shook his head. “I never saw the attack coming. Never had an indication we were being hunted. But I saw my men attacked. I saw every one of them fall.” His eyes were bloodshot, his voice hoarse. “I let them fall to the Beasts, yet I was the one saved. I am the one here, now. That’s always been hard to swallow.”

Laura’s heart exploded with grief for him. She crawled across the floor, and slipped between his legs, trying to get close, to offer comfort. “You are not to blame,” she declared huskily. “Distraction be damned, Rinehart. You were attacked by Demons. You were human. Your men were human. They would have fallen no matter what you did.”

“You don’t know that.” His eyes were heavy with blame, his hands settling possessively on her waist, pulling her closer. “I couldn’t let you fall, too, Laura. I couldn’t. You’re right about me stealing your ability to make that choice. I justified my actions, but deep down I knew what I was doing and why. I simply wasn’t willing to let them have you, too.”

She pressed her lips to his. “I know,” she whispered. “I know.”

“Forgive me,” he said, a plea in his voice that reached straight through to her soul.

“There’s nothing to forgive,” she promised, and she meant it after hearing that story. She understood why he would fear letting her choose. That didn’t mean she liked it, didn’t mean she agreed with his actions. But she understood. In fact, listening to him speak, she’d begun to realize that all war was not about death. That her abilities were meant to save lives in ways she’d never thought she’d consider.

He inched back enough to probe her expression a moment before pulling the shoulder of her T-shirt down to expose the star. One long finger slid over the mark there as he studied it with heavy thoughts. His gaze lifted, seeking hers. “I have always been some kind of soldier, Laura. It’s who I am. It’s what I am.”

“Then be that,” she said softly, her voice catching in her throat. “Be who you are. I’ve never been able to do that.”

“There’s nothing normal about the life of a soldier.”

Her hand caught his and she kissed it, her lips lifting in a fleeting smile. “Normal is relative, remember?” Then, more seriously: “I just have to figure out what that means for me. Everything has happened so fast.”

His lips brushed hers, his hand sliding up her back as he pulled her down on the sleeping bag with him. “I’ll try not to rush you,” he said, his mouth slanting over hers, his tongue flicking against hers for a brief, sensual moment that defied his words. “But don’t take too long. I really don’t know how long I can keep from falling in love with you.”

He kissed her then, and there was nothing brief about it. A kiss that was filled with tenderness, a kiss that branded her in ways that the mark on her shoulder could not.

And Laura decided then, that if she could escape this island, she might just find a purpose that reached beyond “normal.” Perhaps it was time she did more than talk to her patients about looking at their abilities as gifts, and embrace her own.

 

Extraction time arrived at 4:00 a.m. The rendezvous for Laura and Rinehart with the rest of their group was at the edge of the woods overlooking a vacant beach area. Though there were no signs of Beasts, Rinehart was edgy, ready to get this done. Ready to take Laura to safety and get Rock the hell out of Walch’s hands. But despite all this, he watched with satisfaction as Laura greeted the twins, Blake and even Kresley, in good health.

Any peace he took from that sight faded as he watched Kresley start to cry and heard her speak of Lucan. Max appeared by Rinehart’s side, leaving Des to guard the others. “Lucan,” he said, his voice low, barely above a whisper, but still rasped with roughness. “He made a deal with the Demons who marked Kresley, traded himself for her.”

Rinehart damn near doubled over with the news. Not Lucan. “There was another way. We would have found it.” Lucan had made it for three decades. “Only days ago he told me to hang on. He spoke of our purpose.”

Max’s expression was grim. “He said saving her was his purpose.”

Rinehart knew then. “She was his mate.”

“Yes.” Max scanned the beach, his jaw clenched. “The Demons weren’t working on their own.” He hesitated. “Tezi came for him.”

Rinehart shook himself, certain he had heard wrong. “The former leader of the Knights?” he asked, disbelieving.

Max gave a jerky nod. “The one and only.”

A chill raced down Rinehart’s back. Every Knight vowed to see death before allowing themselves to turn.

“I always assumed there were some of the early Knights remaining, ones like me who hung on to hope,” Max said. “I guess we know now what happens when they hang on too long.”

“You think that’s it?” Rinehart asked. “That Tezi hung on too long?”

“Yeah,” Max agreed. “I think he hung on until the darkness became such that he couldn’t see what he was becoming anymore. I think there are others like that out there, too.” He cut Rinehart a sharp look. “And so does Adrian. He sent us a message. A new war has begun.”

Rinehart would have asked more, but Laura was suddenly by his side.

“Oh, my God,” she whispered, her hand on his arm a silent comfort he’d never thought possible. “I heard about Lucan. Kresley’s a mess. I’m sure you are, too. I…We’ll go after him. I have powers and—”

Max eased away, leaving them alone.

Rinehart wrapped his hand around her neck, under her hair and kissed her forehead. “You’re powerful, baby, but not powerful enough to take on the Underworld.” She was changing, joining their place in this world, whether she knew it or not. And it pleased him in a way he would never be able to put into words.

“We can try,” she pleaded. “We ca—”

“We can’t,” he said, cutting her off. “Lucan might as well have made a deal with the devil, and he did so willingly. There is no turning back from that.” The sound of a chopper in the distance put him on alert. It was time to leave—and not a minute too soon, in Rinehart’s book.

The Knights exchanged a “go ahead” look and launched into action. They’d opted out of arming the others in the planning stages of the escape. None of them had handled guns before, and bullets slowed the Beasts, but did not kill them. The best bet was a focus on fast action.

Des and the twins headed for the helicopter first. Max followed with Kresley and Blake, then Rinehart and Laura broke out of the woods to follow. At that same moment, a group of at least twenty Beasts charged from the woods. The enemy’s position was not more than half a mile down the beach, and they were headed straight for the chopper.

Everything happened quickly from there, but it played out for Rinehart in slow, torturous motion. He and the other Knights drew their swords, and Rinehart looked protectively to Laura.

“I can handle myself,” she said, already running to attack, her intention to fight clear.

“Damn it,” Rinehart growled, charging forward to keep her close, a tactic that proved impossible as he found himself attacked on all sides. His sword swiped viciously at an attacker, taking the Beast’s head. Then another. But two more came at him.

He could see Des and Max in the distance, both heavily engaged, as well. Desperate to get to Laura, he fought with a fierceness beyond what he’d possessed before. He had come too far to lose her now. He would not fail. One Beast at a time, he turned his attackers to ash and flames.

His heart pounding, keeping a tight grip on his sword, he scanned for Laura, running toward her the moment he had a visual. She had her patients all together, but a group of Beasts were stalking them. His heart lurched at the sight, a roar escaping his lips as he charged toward them.

A second later, relief washed over him as Laura used her abilities to disarm the Beasts, sending their weapons flying across the beach. Kresley shot fire at one of them, a successful hit that sent the Beast running for the water but also seemed to weaken her. Rinehart was close now, his strides eating away the distance, crashing into the sand as his heart slammed into his chest.

Kresley stumbled and fell, and to Rinehart’s distress Laura wavered in her stance, seeking a visual of Kresley. The Beasts took the moment as an opportunity. They snatched up Blake and started running. Blake became invisible instantly, only he was still in the Beast’s arms. Or was he? The Beast stopped, let his arms fall.

Blake had a chance to escape, and Rinehart could only hope he took it, because Rinehart couldn’t go to him, not yet. He was finally at Laura’s side, and only a second before Jag orbed to his.

Des and Max engaged the remaining Beasts at their frontal positions. “I can take two at a time,” Jag said, intending to orb everyone to the chopper. Rinehart knew Marisol wouldn’t leave that chopper to help; she was forbidden to enter a war zone, her healing ability too valuable to endanger.

Rinehart turned to Laura; Kresley was by her side, their arms linked. “Go with Jag, Laura,” he ordered, directing them toward their leader.

Her refusal was instant. “No,” she said. “Take the twins. You have to take the twins.”

Jacob and Jared instantly objected. “We will stay. We can fight.”

Laura ignored them. “Their blood,” she said, her plea directed at Jag. “It has healing ability. They could save lives in the future. Many lives. Take them.”

Jag hesitated, and Laura immediately saw this, declaring her case. “Rinehart and I…I have his mark. I’m not at risk. I can’t turn. I won’t turn.” Desperation seeped into her face. “Please. I can fight, Jag. I can survive.”

“And so can I,” Kresley declared bravely, despite the obvious weak state that the Demons had left her in.

Rinehart shoved away the fear for his mate, pride filling him at both Laura’s and Kresley’s bravery. Jag didn’t need to hear more, either, nor did he give the twins a chance to argue further. He orbed to a position behind them, touched their shoulders. They disappeared to safety.

“Go!” Rinehart yelled to Laura, ordering her and Kresley to run to the chopper. He motioned for Des and Max to follow them. “I’ll get Blake.”

The problem was, he couldn’t see Blake, and another ten-plus Beasts were breaking over the horizon, heading toward them.

“Damn it!” he yelled, and then muttered as he scanned, “Where the hell are you, kid?” Then, in the distance, Rinehart saw him, saw Lucan. He carried Blake in his arms as he charged toward the chopper.

Rinehart’s chest expanded with relief and hope. Everyone was getting out of here safely. And maybe, just maybe, Lucan had found a way out of his deal, as well.

Now, Rinehart just had to go back and get Rock. New determination formed as he charged toward the woods, ready to make his escape. The heavier churn of the chopper engine had him turning, running backward as he watched the takeoff. His heart stopped at what he saw, his movement stilled. Laura wasn’t on the chopper. She was running toward him, as Lucan ran the opposite direction and disappeared into the woods.

 

Lucan entered the woods and stood there, anger coiling in his gut, fists balled by his sides. The silver snakes that shackled his wrists—the result of his refusal to give up his soul—slithered off, and the two silver Demons appeared by his side.

“Don’t be angry,” they said, their bodies pressed to his side, hands on his chest. That was a feeling he would never get used to. “We let you save the boy.”

He grimaced. They let him because they did not dare stop him, though he did not say so. That was a card better left in the deck. Torturing his mind was their only weapon, and his actions could have gotten him killed. Tezi would not want to lose his prize.

“I was promised my mate’s safety,” Lucan said. “She could have been killed.”

The Demons laughed. “She was saved from us,” they purred. “But no one promised her eternal protection. You were the only one who could have given her that.”

Lucan’s head spun; a wave of remorse washed over him. What had he done?

Rebellion formed in Lucan. There would be an eternity of punishment to endure. He might as well get it started in style. He was going to get Rock out of that warehouse.

 

Rinehart pulled Laura into the woods and confronted her. “What were you thinking?” he demanded. “You should have been on the chopper!”

“You can’t do this alone!” she rebutted. “You need me.”

Worry settled in his chest at the same time as acceptance. What could he say? He did need her. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“I don’t want anything to happen to you,” she countered. “And you can’t go after Rock alone. You’ll both die.” She pinned him in a stare. “So what’s the plan?”

He shook his head and smiled to himself, not about to let her see him do so. She was a little warrior princess in the making. Protecting her was definitely going to be a lifetime endeavor.

Rinehart pointed to the Beasts crossing the beach to their far right. “We follow them to Walch and hopefully, Rock.”

“You think he moved Rock to a new location?”

“He’s still got military in his makeup,” Rinehart said. “He moved him. I’m sure of it. We’ll find the place and then wait for the right moment.”

 

Rinehart found that right moment nearly twelve hours later—a long time to wait, considering Rinehart had a good view of Rock hanging from the ceiling of the warehouse they’d tracked him to, his body bloodied and lifeless. The warehouse doors had been rolled open to expose him. It was clear that Rock was bait, and bait they didn’t have a choice but to take. His first instinct upon seeing his fellow Knight like that had been to charge in and cut him down, blast through the Beasts and take him. Then logic had taken hold, and he had endured the wait for the cover of night.

They planned to have Laura cave in the front wall to create a distraction. “You’re sure you can do it?” Rinehart asked.

“I’m sure,” she said. “Just be careful.” He kissed her and didn’t give himself time to worry about leaving her alone. He crawled through the woods toward the warehouse to make his move. As planned, the minute he arrived near the side of the warehouse, Laura did her thing. The walls began to rumble. Rinehart waited for the collapse that didn’t come. Instead, the walls kept shaking, so hard it felt like an earthquake. With a mental shrug, he decided that would have to do.

He drew his sword and rushed the warehouse, ready to be charged by the enemy, but no attack came. The walls stopped moving abruptly, and he hoped like hell that Laura stayed her position and waited for him.

He moved toward Rock’s bloodied body, the sight of him far grimmer up close. The wound in his gut was deep; blood oozed from it, pooling on the ground. Rock needed Marisol before he bled to death. And Rinehart was going to get him to her.

Rinehart reached up to cut Rock down, feeling a renewed urgency about Rock’s condition.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Walch spoke from behind him. “He’s wired with some pretty heavy firepower.”

Rinehart turned slowly to find Walch alone. Walch held up a remote control. “One wrong move and boom.”

Rinehart digested that bit of news with a sickening feeling in his stomach. Rock was wired with a bomb. Interesting, though, that Walch hadn’t blown them both up the minute Rinehart had entered the building. “What do you want, Walch?” he asked, certain there was an agenda behind his actions.

“Wanted,” he corrected. “We both know the patients are gone. But not their doctor. I saw her powers. The shaking walls were a dead giveaway that she is here. My soldiers should retrieve her shortly, so you can be together. Though I have to tell you, I haven’t decided on your fate. Push this button or hand you over to Tezi? I really have to weigh the rewards and get back to you.”

“They’ll never touch her,” Rinehart said, certain of his mate’s skills.

“Rinehart!” Laura yelled, appearing in the doorway with a Beast holding each arm. “He has a bomb.”

“He knows,” Walch said drily, and quirked a brow at Rinehart. “She really did take to you quite quickly. One little mention of your destruction and she restrained herself.” He motioned to the Beasts. “Tie them both up.” He smiled at Rinehart. “Tezi will find two Knights a worthy sacrifice, I believe. I should save you for him. He has a wicked way with a knife, I hear. All that Aztec history of his. Likes to cut the hearts out, you know?”

A Beast tossed Laura against Rinehart, and he caught her, keeping her from falling, but he didn’t look at her. His gaze was riveted to the doorway, and he found Lucan standing there, a lethal menace crackling off him. Laura seemed to sense him, too, her attention reaching for the door. “Lucan,” Laura whispered.

Yes, Lucan. But had Lucan come to take them to Tezi or to aid their escape? A question quickly answered as Lucan shouted across the room. “Walch!” Lucan yelled, drawing his sword as he walked toward them. “Time to die.” Rinehart could see the anger in Lucan, the resolve to kill Walch.

Walch laughed, appearing unfazed. “Three for one. I love it!” He pointed to several Beasts. “Take him!”

Suddenly two snakes slithered off Lucan’s arms. Laura gasped at the sight as they watched the snakes transform into two beautiful females with silver-clad bodies and silver eyes. “Tezi said Walch is ours to take,” the Demons said, looking up at Lucan. They stepped away from Lucan and joined their fingers together. Walch collapsed onto the ground and started screaming in a painful fit. The Demons sashayed to his side and squatted next to him, each resting a hand on his shoulders. He disappeared with them, and so did the remote to the bomb.

Rinehart launched into action. With one swift movement he raised his sword and sliced Rock’s hands free, then wasted no time turning to meet the sword of a Beast that was charging at him. Lucan was doing the same. The soldier in him remotely assessed the situation, tallying his adversaries and counting four more Beasts.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw a Beast charge Laura. A moment later it flew across the warehouse. She repeated the action one Beast at a time, until those four were in retreat.

Rinehart sliced his blade through the air and took the head of the Beast he was battling. Lucan quickly managed the same. The two Beastly bodies lit up in flames and turned to ash.

Lucan yanked a cell phone from his pocket and tossed it to Rinehart. “In case you don’t have one handy. Call for a ticket home.”

“What about you?”

His expression was blank. “It’s too late for me.” He said nothing more, turned and walked away.

“He needs help now, Rinehart!” Laura’s yell had Rinehart turning away from Lucan, already dialing the phone. She was leaning over him. “I can’t feel any air at all.”

Jag answered the line quickly, and by the time Rinehart hit the end button, Jag and Marisol had appeared. Marisol leaned over Rock and sobbed, her hand going to the wound on his stomach and lighting there.

Jag turned as Lucan reached the exit. Lucan seemed to sense his presence. He turned to Jag and saluted. Jag stood there, utterly still, and Rinehart knew he was hurting. Jag cared about his men. He’d die for any one of them. “He retains his soul,” Jag said softly.

“Yes,” Rinehart said, having thought the same thing. He’d seen Lucan’s eyes, and they were not that of a Beast. “I don’t know how, but they have him captive.”

Jag said nothing more, but he didn’t have to. They both knew the war had changed, shifting in a way only time could define, in a way that threatened to reveal a battle of enemies once considered friends.

Marisol looked up at Jag and nodded. “It’s time.” She didn’t wait for an answer. She and Rock shimmered out of the room.

Rinehart grabbed Laura’s hand, noting her worried expression. “They went home,” he told her.

Jag reached out and touched them. “Where we all need to be right now—home.”

They disappeared from the warehouse, finally departing the island.

 

They appeared on the lawn of a ranch house. Rinehart immediately pulled Laura close, fitting her beneath the shelter of his shoulder as Jag released her hand. But her heart still raced as they waited for Rock and Marisol to appear. “Where are they?” she asked. “We have to go back.”

“They are fine,” Jag assured her. “Marisol is caring for him someplace more suitable than the front lawn.” He smiled. “Rock will recover fully. Marisol’s gift of healing will have him well in no time. But you were a big part of getting him here to safety. And we thank you, Laura.” He held out his arms to the surroundings. “Welcome to Jaguar Ranch. It is your home if you wish it to be.” The screen door opened and Laura looked to the porch as Kresley, Blake and the twins ran down the stairs to greet her. A moment of sadness over Carol’s absence washed over her, but she clung to the hope that the others would now be safe.

She looked up at Rinehart a moment, a feeling of belonging filling her she could hardly comprehend. He kissed her head and she darted away to greet everyone. She could feel a new beginning forming, a new place called normal. And she thought she just might want to call it home.