Darkness on Fire
Author: Alexis Morgan
Date: 2011-09-13 04:00:00+00:00
Keywords: Paranormal Romance; Paranormal; Romance; Urban Fantasy; Supernatural; Science Fiction; Fantasy
Description: DARKNESS ON FIRE: A warrior in need of a battle he can fight . . . Penn has struggled for years to overcome a devastating injury to his sword arm. He's been forced to sit on the sidelines and watch his friends fight and die while all he can do is watch. Then Devlin offers him a mission: a mysterious woman called to warn them that someone is threatening the stability of the barrier near the Yellowstone caldera, which could destroy both worlds. Penn packs his guns and his sword and heads for Wyoming to assess the situation. Brought to our world as an infant, Jora b'Larth has spent her entire lif
Publisher: Pocket Books

ALSO BY ALEXIS MORGAN

The Paladin Series

THE DARKNESS BEYOND

BOUND BY DARKNESS

DEFEAT THE DARKNESS

DARKNESS UNKNOWN

REDEEMED IN DARKNESS

IN DARKNESS REBORN

DARK DEFENDER

DARK PROTECTOR

The Talion Series

DARK WARRIOR UNTAMED

DARK WARRIOR UNBROKEN

DARK WARRIOR UNLEASHED

Pocket Books
A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1230 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2011 by Patricia L. Pritchard

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address Pocket Books Subsidiary Rights Department,
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

First Pocket Books ebook edition September 2011

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trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

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Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
eISBN 978-1-4391-6868-4

To all my readers who love the Paladins as much as I do

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Acknowledgments

I want to thank librarians everywhere for their willingness to share their love of books and knowledge with all of us. I love the way you always make me feel that no question is too strange, and I’ve asked some dandies along the way.

Chapter 1

Penn Sebastian shifted around in his pile of threadbare blankets, which did little to protect his ass from either the hard concrete or the damp cold of a rainy Seattle day. The need to think good thoughts was riding him hard, and he ran through the exercises that his Handler, Dr. Laurel Young, had prescribed to restore more flexibility to his right hand.

He was probably fooling himself about seeing some improvement. No one expected him to regain full use of his dominant hand, not even him. On that happy thought, he repeated the stretches with his left hand, alternating working each hand in preparation for the weapons workout Barak q’Young, his brother-in-law, had scheduled after Penn’s shift ended.

Most days Penn was okay with his sister hooking up with the guy, even if Barak wasn’t exactly human—or even from this world. But since the man had called a mountain down on his own head to save Lacey from human killers, it would take a harder man than Penn to hold Barak’s alien nature against him. There wasn’t anything the two of them wouldn’t do to keep Lacey safe, which gave them common ground to build on.

Penn resisted the urge to check the expensive watch he kept in his pocket; watching the minutes tick by only made the time drag out more. He wished he could at least read a book, but that was out of character for his well-crafted disguise. Most people averted their eyes as they walked past, not wanting to even make simple eye contact with someone so down on his luck.

A few would drop some coins or even a couple of dollars on his blankets and then hurry on, as if poverty was catching. He used to buy himself an occasional cup of coffee with their largess, but his conscience had put a stop to that. Now he passed the money on to the local food bank.

Another razor-sharp gust of wind cut through his thin jacket and pelted him with a swirl of leaves and dirt. He turned up his collar and yanked his watch cap down over his ears. As if sensing his determination to ignore her efforts to harass him, Mother Nature pulled out all stops. The clouds overhead split wide open and emptied cold rain directly over his head.

Cursing, Penn thought back to the way things used to be, before his life went all to hell with the stroke of a sword. Sometimes, if he tried hard enough, he could almost remember what it felt like to be happy.

God, this never-ending pity party had to stop.

The sound of a nearby door opening snapped him to full attention. Easing his hand beneath the blankets, he gripped his gun, even though he knew that whoever was approaching was a friend—or at least not an enemy.

The footsteps stopped a few feet away. “Penn?”

Penn didn’t bother to look up. “What now, Cullen?”

“I thought you could use a cup of coffee.”

Penn held out his hand and waited for the Paladin to make his final approach. He knew his friends felt sorry for him, but he didn’t want their pity. That didn’t mean he was stupid enough to turn down a hot drink.

“What else did you want?” Because bringing Penn a cup of coffee wasn’t responsible for the tension flowing off his friend in waves.

Cullen frowned down at him. “I don’t want a damn thing, but Devlin said for you to report to him after your shift.”

“No can do.” Penn took a cautious sip of the coffee. “I’ve got a workout scheduled with Barak. Whatever Devlin wants will have to wait.”

“He said no excuses, so do us all a favor and head for his office as soon as you’re relieved here.” Cullen crouched down to look Penn straight in the eye, his concern obvious. “He’s been juggling the schedule all day, trying to keep everything covered and still give a few of us some downtime. I wouldn’t jerk his chain.”

“Fine. Tell him I’ll be there. Now get out of my face. I’m busy sitting on my ass and counting raindrops.”

“You need to snap out of the pity party. God—sometimes I don’t know why we even bother.” Cullen stood up looking thoroughly pissed.

Cullen was usually the calmest of the bunch, and his temper was proof of how overworked the Paladins had been lately. Anyone who could swing a sword had been spending record amounts of time fighting at the barrier. Thanks to his lame arm, Penn was left out of that party.

Cullen tried one more time. “When you’re done with Devlin, give me a holler and we’ll grab a beer and a burger.”

Penn sighed. “A beer sounds good, as long as it doesn’t mess with whatever you and Lusahn have going tonight.”

“Not a problem; I told her I’d be late. She’s taking the kids out for pizza.”

Penn nodded, not wanting to hear what Devlin had to say, but he had no choice. “Okay, I’ll see what’s up with Devlin. One way or the other, I’ll let you know how it goes.”

Cullen feigned a punch at Penn’s head. “It’s nice to see that brain of yours actually does work—sometimes, at least.”

As his friend disappeared back down the alley, Penn’s mind swirled with all the possibilities of why Devlin wanted to see him. He tipped his head back and let the cool splash of raindrops wash across his skin. One way or the other, he had the strangest feeling that things were about to change. He’d see what Devlin had to say and then play the cards he’d been dealt.

An hour later, Penn stood outside Devlin’s door with a boulder-size chip on his shoulder. He couldn’t think of a single thing he’d done wrong lately. A while back, he and Devlin had come to an agreement. Penn would try harder not to screw up and Bane wouldn’t kick his worthless ass out of the Paladins permanently. So far, they’d each held up his end of the deal.

“Are you coming in, Sebastian, or you going to stand out in the hallway all night?” The thick door barely muffled Devlin’s bellow.

Bracing himself for the worst, Penn walked into the office and dropped into the seat facing Devlin’s desk. “You wanted to see me?”

Devlin sniffed the air and gave him the evil eye. “Did you have to show up smelling like wet dog? We do have showers and clean clothes right down the hall.”

Penn had thought about using them, but had decided against it to get this meeting over with quickly. Depending on what kind of burr Devlin had up his backside, Penn might have the rest of his life to clean up.

He shrugged. “Cullen said you wanted me as soon as I got off shift. I’m here. What do you want?”

Devlin leaned back in his chair and gave Penn a hard-eyed stare. “How’s the hand?”

Penn clenched his teeth. It always came down to that, didn’t it? At least Devlin didn’t pussyfoot around like the others did, checking out the thick scar that transected Penn’s right hand and wrist whenever they thought he wouldn’t notice. He couldn’t, wouldn’t lie to Devlin. They’d served together too long for that.

“About the same. Laurel sees some improvement in my right hand, and Barak thinks I’m doing better fighting with my left.” Penn forced his hands to relax. “I’m not convinced either of them are right.”

Devlin nodded as if Penn had just confirmed something he’d suspected all along. “Okay, then. The fact that we’re shorthanded won’t come as a surprise to you. I’ve lost you to normal duty. Hunter is doing better, but he’s got his own patch of hell to guard up north. Even if I need him, he’s an hour out at best. Cullen is back to fighting, but he doesn’t much like it.

“Here’s the thing. I got a phone call from a woman this morning. No idea who she is or how she got my number. I sicced D.J. and Cullen on back-tracing it to see if they can identify the caller, but they haven’t found out anything other than she’s good at hiding her tracks.”

Penn was impressed. Very few could out-cyberdance the two Paladins. But what did it have to do with him?

“I’d like to write it off as a crackpot call, but I can’t. That’s where you come in.” Devlin picked up a tablet and read from his notes.

“According to this mystery woman, the caldera under Yellowstone is becoming increasingly unstable. Normally that wouldn’t concern us. The few stretches of barrier in that area are too small to be of much use to those on the other side. And we all know there’s nothing anyone can do if that pressure cooker decides to blow its top.”

Penn shifted restlessly. “Did you call me in here for a geology lesson?”

Devlin shot him a hard look. “I’m telling you all of this because this woman thinks that the instability isn’t natural. She’s apparently found evidence someone is screwing around with the caldera, trying to siphon off the geothermal energy.”

A sudden chill filled the room. “Siphoning it off to where?”

Devlin looked bleak. “Across the barrier. Her words, by the way, not mine.”

“Who the hell is this woman?”

“Good question—and that is why you’re here. You’re the only man I can spare to find out what the hell is going on. Go home, pack what you need for a few days, grab a few hours’ sleep, and then get your ass to Wyoming.”

He pulled out a stack of cash from a drawer and shoved it across the desk toward Penn. “I’d like to keep this off the books, which means no airline reservations, no charge cards. Right now I don’t trust anyone in the Regents enough to want them involved.”

Penn’s hand shook as he scooped up the money. Holy hell! A mission—a real honest-to-God mission that required a warrior’s skills. Other than providing backup when Hunter Fitzsimon had needed some help, Penn had done nothing for months except park his ass out in the alley while his friends fought and died—and then died again.

Being needed felt damn good. Being trusted to do the job right had him sitting up straighter and wishing he had stopped to clean up before reporting in.

Devlin tossed him the notepad. “You’re to drive to some town called Wolf Cave, check in to the only motel, and wait.”

“For what?” Penn asked as he read over Devlin’s barely legible scrawl.

Devlin looked purely disgusted. “I wish I knew, Penn. For both our sakes, I really wish I knew.”

Two days later, Penn stared into the small bathroom mirror and studied the face reflected there. Before setting off for Wyoming, he’d gotten a haircut and his beard trimmed. His scruffy look had been more than just his street persona disguise; it had provided him with a mask to hide behind while he nursed his wounds.

Leaning in closer to the mirror, he turned his face from one side to the other, studying the lines around his eyes and the ones that bracketed his mouth. Where had those come from? No longer able to do the work he’d trained for his entire life, there wasn’t much left of the man he used to be. He hardly recognized himself at all.

All this waiting wasn’t helping his mood at all. He left the bathroom and crossed his surprisingly comfortable motel room to flop down onto the upholstered chair wedged between the bed and the outside wall. The place offered cable, so at least he could watch sports until the call came. If it came. If this ended up being one giant hoax, Devlin wasn’t the only one who was going to be royally pissed.

As if his frustration conjured it up, the phone on the small bedside table started to ring. Finally, some action! He dove across the bed to snatch the receiver off the hook.

“Yeah?”

“Did Devlin Bane send you?” The woman’s voice sounded hesitant, as if she was having serious second thoughts about talking to him.

“Yeah,” he repeated. “Are you the one who called him?”

She didn’t answer the question. “Across the street from your motel is a diner. I’ll meet you there in fifteen minutes. Go in and sit at the booth in the back corner.”

“And if it’s taken?”

“If you hurry, it won’t be.”

The phone went dead, leaving Penn staring out the window just as a lone car drove by the door and out of the parking lot. Coincidence? No way to know, leaving him no choice but to hike over to the diner and wait. Just in case, though, he wrote down the plate number. If necessary, he’d sic D.J. or Cullen on it later.

He slipped on his jacket, more to hide his shoulder holster than because of the chill in the air. Though he might be walking into a trap, he doubted it. If someone wanted to take out a Paladin, Seattle or Missouri would’ve made a lot more sense than a remote town in Wyoming.

He stepped out into the darkness, pausing to look up at the night sky. There were far more stars scattered overhead than could be normally seen back home in Seattle. For some reason the small pinpoints of light brightened his mood. Reminding himself that the clock was ticking, he locked the door and headed for the neon lights across the road.

Chapter 2

Jora slowly cruised the parking lot of the small motel at the edge of town, just as she had at this same time for the past three evenings. She checked each vehicle as she passed by, looking for ones with license plates from Washington state. Over the previous two nights she’d found a couple, but none of the owners met the description Devlin Bane had given her—a male traveling alone. A name would’ve been helpful, but she couldn’t blame Bane for protecting his man’s identity. She hadn’t actually been forthcoming herself.

She circled around to the back half of the lot, the thought of the head Paladin tying her stomach in one huge knot. Ever since making that phone call to Devlin Bane, she’d worried about what she’d unleashed. The only comfort was that the man, with his reputation as a stone-cold killer, wasn’t coming himself.

What would her parents have thought about her decision to call upon the Paladins for help? She wished they were still alive to advise her. But they weren’t, which left this whole mess squarely in her court. She’d made the best choice she could from the limited options available to her.

She spotted a black truck parked in the shadows at the end of the row and knew the Paladin warrior had really come. Unsure whether to be relieved or terrified, she backed her small SUV in next to the oversized pickup and left the engine running.

There was only one room with its lights on, leaving no doubt where the warrior waited for her call.

From the safety of her car, she pulled out her cell phone and dialed the motel office and asked for room fifteen. A male voice finally answered. After a brief exchange, she put her car in gear and drove away, circling the block before heading for the diner on the chance he’d spotted her SUV through his motel window.

Ten minutes later, she parked under a flickering streetlight and retrieved her briefcase from the backseat. A bad case of nerves had her clutching the handle hard enough to make her hand ache, but she would go through with this meeting.

She’d been tempted to leave the files laying on his doorstep and then walk away from this whole mess. The Paladins should be able to handle the problem. After all, it was their job. But what if they couldn’t? What if it required someone with her special talents? No, better to meet the enemy in person and judge his ability to fight their common foe.

Approaching the diner, she caught her reflection in the window. Maybe she would’ve looked more impressive if she’d worn her uniform instead of a T-shirt and jeans. But at only five feet two, she couldn’t count on her appearance to intimidate anyone. Perhaps it would work in her favor if the Paladin underestimated her.

Inside, she made eye contact with Betsy, who cocked her head in the direction of the back corner to signal that Jora’s guest had arrived. Earlier, she’d asked the waitress to reserve the most private booth in the diner for her for several nights. Since it wasn’t the first time she’d met someone there for dinner to discuss business, Betsy hadn’t asked any questions.

Jora wound her way through the crowded diner, smiling and nodding at the occasional acquaintance as she did. By the time she reached the far end of the room, she had a jumbo-size case of nerves.

The Paladin was busy studying the menu. She waited impatiently for him to acknowledge her presence, unsure of how he would react once he got a good look at her. Finally, she cleared her throat.

Without looking up, he said, “Can you give me another couple of minutes? I’m expecting someone.”

“I know. I’m the someone.”

Fierce blue eyes glared up at her, widening in shock as he got a better look at her. “Holy shit!” he blurted.

At least he hadn’t immediately gone on the attack. Considering he killed her kind for a living, she supposed she should be grateful for that. Now that the moment was upon her, she wasn’t sure what to say.

“Mr. Bane told you to expect me?”

He nodded, still looking at her as if she’d grown a second head. Was he just going to sit there and stare up at her all night?

Finally the Paladin blinked a couple of times and shook his head as if to clear it. “I’m sorry, it’s just that you’re Kalith.”

He stopped and tried again. “I don’t mean that I’m sorry you’re Kalith. I just wasn’t expecting that—although maybe I should have.”

At least he hadn’t called her an “Other,” the usual epithet his kind used for hers. “I wasn’t sure you’d come if you knew.”

He looked past her. “Are you here by yourself?”

Why did he want to know that? She had opted for the diner as a meeting place because she wasn’t eager to be alone with this man. She backed away a couple of steps. “Yes, I am. Is that going to be problem for you?”

“Not at the moment.” He gestured toward the other side of the booth. “Why don’t you sit down? People are starting to stare. We’ll eat and then you can tell me what’s going on.”

She slid onto the opposite bench and picked up the menu, not that she needed it. Betsy knew without asking what Jora would order. Being known to everybody in town was one of the benefits of living in a small town, but one of the downsides, as well. By morning, everyone would’ve heard about Jora’s dinner with a strange man.

She fought the urge to smile. Her friends and neighbors had no idea how really strange this guy was. Her, too, for that matter, so she’d have to keep his secret to protect her own.

The waitress appeared with her notepad in hand. “What can I get you, mister?”

The Paladin looked to Jora for advice. “What would you recommend?”

Her friend laughed. “I wouldn’t depend on her for recommendations ’cause all she ever eats is salad. She’s one of them vegetarians.”

For the first time there was a glint of humor in those blue eyes. “I should’ve guessed that.”

Betsy pounced on that remark. “Really? You never said how you know our Jora.”

“You might say we have some mutual acquaintances.” He looked back down at the menu. “I’ll have the meat loaf. Is that blackberry pie I spotted as good as it looks?”

That was one recommendation Jora could make. “Better. Betsy, make it two pieces of the pie with ice cream on mine.”

“Mine, too,” the Paladin added as he handed the menu back to Betsy.

Jora waited until she was out of hearing before speaking again. “You know others of my kind?”

“Several.”

How could that be? Who were they? Paladins hunted down and killed any Kalith who made it across the barrier. This man’s hands had calluses from swinging a sword, marking him as a Paladin warrior. Her father’s weapon hand had looked just like that, and she had a matching set herself.

Her companion tore open three sugar packets and dumped them into his coffee. “What’s your name?”

“I was born Jora b’Larth, although the people here know me simply as Jora Larth. And you are?”

“Penn Sebastian. Are there other Kalith living in this area?”

Despite his casual tone, his interest was anything but. “There is no good answer to that question.”

He arched an eyebrow. “I’d settle for the truth.”

“If I say no, you won’t believe me anyway. If I say yes, you’ll want details. It’s bad enough you and Bane know that I am here. I wouldn’t think of putting anyone else in danger.”

His eyebrows snapped together as he considered her answer. Finally he jerked his head in a quick nod. “Fair enough. One Paladin and one Kalith. Works for me—at least for now.”

Betsy chose that moment to deliver their food. Rather than continue the conversation, Jora toyed with her salad while Penn Sebastian dug into his dinner.

Okay, so maybe they should’ve guessed that the mysterious woman would turn out to be Kalith. From the records Hunter and his woman had unearthed from her family’s old bed-and-breakfast north of Seattle, they knew that people from Kalithia had been buying their way into this world for a while. Jora could be part of that migration.

How had she gotten here, and how long ago? No harm in asking, although he wouldn’t be surprised if she refused to answer. “So, have you lived here long?”

She speared another piece of lettuce before answering. “I’ve lived here most of my life. My parents crossed the barrier when I was an infant.”

“Where are they now?”

Her pale eyes turned bleak. “Dead. They both died in a car accident a few years ago.”

Oddly enough, Penn found himself sympathizing. “My folks are gone, too, so it’s just me and my sister now.”

Jora abruptly shoved her dinner to the side and set her briefcase down in the space she’d cleared. She pulled out a couple of files and shoved them across the table toward him.

“I brought these for you to look over. They’re copies, so you can take them back to your hotel room to read. My phone number is in the top folder. Call me when you’re done, and we’ll decide where to go from there.”

“I’ll read them tonight.” The waitress approached. “Looks like our pie is coming.”

He studied his wary companion between bites of pie when she wasn’t looking. There was no mistaking her Kalith heritage. Her dark hair hung down past her shoulders with two narrow streaks of silver framing her face. They should have made her look old, but instead they accented her smooth pale skin and light gray eyes. She was pretty, especially if you liked your women petite, and she had plenty of curves in all the right spots.

He usually went for leggy and blond, but maybe that had changed during his long dry spell. He found himself thinking how cuddly Jora looked, the kind of woman who would tuck in nicely next to him in bed between sessions of mind-blowing sex.

That image made him choke on his pie. Where had that thought come from? Pretty or not, she looked just like all those crazies he’d been fighting his whole adult life. Just the thought of her being Kalith had his right hand aching, his scar burning.

He stood and picked up the check the waitress had brought with the pie, then grabbed the folders Jora had given him. “I’ll be in touch.”

Those solemn eyes followed his every move, taking in the uneaten pie and the bill clutched in his hand. “I’ll come with you so Betsy can split the charges.”

He needed to put some serious space between them. “I’ll take care of it. You can buy next time.”

He walked away, knowing her eyes followed him each step of the way.

Three hours later, he’d read through Jora’s reports twice, the first time straight through without stopping. The second time, he’d taken his time, making notes in the margins. Damn, he wished his sister was here. A geologist for the Regents, Lacey had far more technical expertise about what made volcanoes tick—and explode. She’d know better if it was possible to steal energy and send it across to Kalithia.

He flexed his hands, running through his stretching exercises as he considered his options. At the top of the list was getting some sleep. First thing in the morning he’d call Devlin to see if he’d give Penn permission to bring Lacey and maybe Barak in on the problem. Then he’d contact Jora and go from there.

Tired beyond belief, he tossed the files onto the nightstand and crawled under the covers. If only he could shut his mind off as easily as he had the lights. For some reason, he kept seeing Jora b’Larth’s pretty face and wishing he could have done something to ease her mind.

The mission clearly had him all keyed up. Yeah, right. How many missions had him thinking about how soft a Kalith female’s lips looked, or how much he wanted to test the fit of her breast in his hand?

Lusahn, the only other Kalith woman Penn had ever met other than at the end of a sword, was pretty enough but wasn’t his type. For one thing, she belonged to his good buddy Cullen, and Paladins didn’t poach. But mainly, she was a warrior. Penn had always envisioned someone a little softer in his life—not that he figured there was much chance of that happening; Paladins weren’t the best bet for husband material.

Enough already. If he kept this up, he wouldn’t get any sleep at all. He couldn’t risk screwing up this mission just because he’d been too long without a woman to share his bed. Well, and for one other reason.

He threw back the covers and headed for the weapons bag he’d stowed in the closet. Once he had it unzipped, he stared at the contents in disgust. After all this time, he shouldn’t have to do this. To give himself credit, lately there’d been far more nights that he didn’t. Maybe it was all that was riding on this mission; or maybe it was knowing that there were Others out there in the darkness. But the reasons didn’t matter—not if he wanted to get some sleep.

He pulled out his Glock and his sword and headed back to bed. With the gun tucked under the other pillow and the sword lying within reach on the floor, he closed his eyes and slept.

Chapter 3

Too restless to unwind, Jora stood outside on the porch and peered out into the night. She’d considered going for a walk earlier, but there were things lurking in the darkness that were better left undisturbed. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, trying to soothe away the goose bumps rippling on her skin.

The night air tasted of evil.

Who was out there? Using her special senses, she followed their every move as the wanderers disturbed the rightful occupants of the park. Even from this distance, their feet sent small vibrations through the ground as they stomped uncaring through the trees, allowing her to track their movements. In the darkness, humans and Kalith sounded the same. Neither one had any business prowling her woods at night. Tomorrow she’d have more information to report to the Paladin.

She pulled herself back, too tired to maintain a constant vigil by herself. Was Penn Sebastian having any better luck sleeping than she was? Probably not, if the information in her reports scared him as much as it did her. At least dawn was just a few hours away. Once the sun crested the horizon, she’d be knocking on his door to see what the Paladins had to offer in the way of help.

She pulled the collar of her robe up close to her neck as her chills worsened, thinking about her current predicament. According to the stories her parents had told her, Kalith considered the Paladins to be bloodthirsty savages. God knows how many of her people had died on the point of a Paladin’s sword over the centuries.

Yet here she was, having to trust one to protect her secrets and watch her back, while the two of them dealt with a far greater threat to both their worlds. She closed her eyes, doing one last check with her other senses, seeking out those that scurried about in the darkness.

A small group of deer was crossing the nearby creek, their grazing done for the night. She could feel their weariness as they made their way to the thicket where they’d bed down. An owl swooped down out of the trees on silent wings, just missing the small marmot it’d been tracking. The normal rustlings of the park’s residents were soothing.

Wait—what was that? Her stomach lurched as she realized that the four-legged and winged creatures had suddenly taken cover, hiding in the deepest shadows. Jora’s pulse raced to the same frightened pace as theirs did, all because the two-legged predators stalking the night were now headed her way. Not one, but two. From this distance she couldn’t tell much about them other than they were both male, both intent on doing violence, and she was their target. Obviously she hadn’t hidden her tracks as well as she’d thought.

Jora dashed inside the cabin, stripping off her robe to pull on her sweats, then grabbing the backpack she kept ready at all times in case she got called out to the field on short notice. She quickly added her father’s sword, a revolver, and a pair of throwing blades to the pile of things she needed to take.

She left her bedside lamp on and took one last look around the small cabin she called home during the summer. Now, how to best make her getaway? Although she knew these woods as well as anyone, she had a feeling the darkness would do little to slow her enemies down. She wouldn’t stand much of a chance on foot against two adult males.

That left her SUV and one other choice—the small dirt bike she sometimes used on back trails. If she took the car, they’d know that she’d escaped as soon as they realized the carport was empty. The bike was light enough to roll it some distance before firing it up. If it bought her even a few minutes’ advantage, she might just survive the night.

She stuck her laptop into the pack and locked the door on the way out. No use in making entry easy for the bastards. After strapping the pack onto the back of the bike, she pulled it out of the carport and started rolling it down the road toward town. As soon as she sensed the cabin had been breached, she straddled the seat and kick-started the bike.

The roar of the engine echoing off the trees sounded inordinately loud, and she knew her enemies would use the noise to track her. She made a beeline for town. There was no point in trying to mislead her pursuers; it was the only logical destination.

Where should she go to ground once she got there? The diner was open all night, but she’d be putting innocent bystanders at risk if the enemy was determined to find her. Betsy might take Jora in for the night, but she was reluctant to bring trouble to her friend’s door. And the local police department wouldn’t know how to battle two killers from another world.

There was only one possibility that made any sense—Penn Sebastian. How would he react to her showing up on his doorstep claiming that death was on her trail? It all depended on whether he’d read her reports, and if he believed what she’d said in them.

Only one way to find out. She revved the engine and tore down the narrow highway, hoping to find sanctuary before her enemies found her.

Penn burrowed under the pile of pillows, wishing whoever was out in the parking lot pounding on a door would just stop. Now—before he picked up his sword and taught the bastard a lesson in manners. Who would be raising such a ruckus at this ungodly hour anyway? It wasn’t as if he was in the barracks back in Seattle with Devlin or Trahern rousting everyone out because the barrier was failing.

It had been a long time since he’d last been in that position. He missed it. The only thing worse than dying in battle was having to stand by and watch while his friends bled and died without him. On that cheery thought, he rolled over and tried to will himself back to sleep. But as soon as he closed his eyes, the phone started ringing.

That was enough to vanquish the last hope for a restful night. No one he knew would be calling on the motel phone. Time to teach someone a lesson about careless dialing. He’d show them how wrong this number really was. He flung his hand out to snatch the receiver and snarled, “This better be damned important. If it isn’t, I will hunt you down like a rabid dog.”

To his surprise, he recognized the caller immediately even though her voice was thick with fear.

“Penn? It’s Jora. Can you let me in? Please?”

“Sure thing.”

He slammed the phone down and rolled off the bed, picking up his gun as he did. He unchained the door and threw it open. The Kalith female stood on the threshold, supporting a dirt bike.

“I know you’ll think I’m crazy, but I need to bring this inside.”

Penn stood back out of the way to give her room to maneuver. It had to be one of the stranger requests he’d ever had, but she didn’t seem the kind to panic easily. Once she was inside, he stepped outside briefly to survey the parking lot. There was no one in sight, but danger was out there somewhere. It would take a lot for a Kalith woman to risk being alone with a Paladin she barely knew.

As he shut and locked the door, Jora leaned the dirt bike against the wall on the far side of the bed. She kept herself busy untying the pack she’d had lashed onto the back of the bike, probably needing the time to collect herself.

When she lifted her bag onto the bed, there was no missing the all-too-familiar shape of a Kalith sword jutting out of the top. Interesting, but he wasn’t overly concerned about it. Even if she did go on the attack, no blade could outrace his bullets.

Finally, she asked, “May I sit down?”

It would have taken a lot harder heart than his to keep a woman standing, especially one who looked so totally spooked. He gestured toward the only chair in the room, figuring she wouldn’t much appreciate him telling her to get comfortable on his bed—not that the thought hadn’t crossed his mind.

He filled the carafe from the coffeemaker with water, figuring Jora might benefit from a cup of hot tea. All the Kalith he knew preferred it to coffee. “Okay, who’s after you?”

Her eyes jerked up to meet his. “I don’t know their names, but I know what they are.”

He filled the two mugs the motel provided and added a teabag and sugar to each. “And that would be?” he prompted as he handed her the tea.

“Evil,” she whispered, her pale gray eyes wide with fear. “I know that sounds crazy, but it’s true. There were two of them. I was still keyed up from meeting with you and couldn’t sleep. That’s the only reason I’m still alive. They were coming after me through the woods near my cabin.”

“What do they look like?” He set his tea aside and picked up his gun.

“I don’t know for certain, but I’m guessing they were Kalith. I never saw them, but I felt them coming and knew they intended to do me great harm.” She sounded defensive, as if expecting him to throw her assertions right back in her face.

He gave her a hard look. “I read your reports. There’s no way even a trained geologist could know all of that for certain. I know, because my sister is one. That tells me that you have the gift to read the moods, for the lack of a better word, of rock formations. Maybe even more than that.”

Jora immediately sat up straighter. “How did you know of this gift? I hadn’t been told that it was one that Paladins had.”

“They don’t, but I know others from your world. Two of them have a variation of that same gift. Can you control the barrier, too?”

She frowned. “I’ve never tried, but probably. I can ease the stress in deep formations when it builds up too much. But if I concentrate hard enough, I can feel the smallest vibrations, even footsteps, as long as the people walking are within my range. It doesn’t work in town or in crowds, because there are too many to distinguish. These two were coming directly through the woods, not following any trails. My cabin is the only dwelling in that area.”

The glow of headlights swept past the window out in the parking lot. Penn pushed the closed curtain aside long enough to look out. Whoever it was pulled out of the lot, heading back toward the park, already too far away for him to see the license plate.

“What did you do when you sensed them coming?”

“I keep a pack ready in case the park needs me in a hurry. I grabbed a few other things and made a run for it. I didn’t take my car, because they would have noticed I was already gone as soon as they approached the cabin. By taking my bike, they had to check the cabin first. It bought me a few minutes.”

“Smart thinking.”

No sign of the car returning. He backed away, putting some distance between himself and Jora. As scared as Jora was, he wanted to offer her the comfort of his arms. She’d turned to him for help, but she was far too skittish for him to risk crowding her too much.

“It’s too dark for us to go back to your place and see much, but I’ll want to do that at first light. I don’t function without at least some sleep, so you can have the bed. I’ll take the floor.”

Jora immediately protested. “But this is your room. I’m the intruder here.”

“My momma raised me to have better manners than that, so I’ll take the floor.” Then he grinned and waggled his eyebrows. “Or we could share the bed.”

Holy crap, it looked as if she was actually considering it. Jora might have no interest beyond a safe place to grab some sleep, but he wasn’t sure he could trust himself. Like all Paladins, he had a strong need to protect. The thought of wrapping Jora in his arms, to keep her close and safe, held a great deal of appeal. But he also knew he’d want to do far more than just snuggle.

Time to make the decision for the both of them. “Help yourself to anything you need in the bathroom. Turn the lights out when you’re done.”

When she disappeared into the other room, he took two of the pillows and the extra blanket from the bed. After putting his gun and sword within easy reach, he made himself as comfortable as he could on the thin carpet. His gut told him Jora was on the up-and-up, but he’d been wrong about people before. If she went for her sword, he’d be ready for her.

When Jora returned he deliberately slowed his breathing, hoping she’d think he was asleep. She tiptoed past him, then all he heard was the rustling of blankets as she settled into the bed.

“Good night, Penn,” she whispered as she turned out the light.

He hadn’t fooled her at all. Smiling in the darkness, he whispered back, “Good night. Sleep well. You’re safe with me.”

“I know.”

He didn’t know which one of them sounded more surprised by that fact.

Tarl slammed his fist against the wall. At least this primitive cabin he’d rented outside of town was far enough from its neighbors to ensure no on heard him bellowing. The bitch had managed to slip free of the trap he’d set. That told him two things were true. The men he’d sent after her were incompetent fools, and her abilities were even more powerful than had been reported.

He turned to face his associates. “Tell me again how this went down.”

Berod shuffled his feet a bit. “We waited until after midnight, just like you told us to do. The parking lot was empty when we left the car there. We cut directly across country toward her cabin to avoid the trails. That way we’d be less likely to run into any stray campers.”

At least they’d thought that much through. He nodded his approval. “Did you see anyone who might have called the woman to warn her?”

“No, sir. I’ve got a talent for detecting heartbeats within a half mile or so, and the woods were empty. When we reached the clearing, there was a light on in the back of the cabin.” He wiped off the sweat that had beaded up on his forehead.

“We watched the place for a couple of minutes, you know, making sure she wasn’t outside. Then I realized her heartbeat was moving away from us. We charged through the cabin door to make sure, and that’s when we heard a motorcycle start up. It took us a few minutes to get back to the car to follow her.”

Tarl let his disapproval leach into his voice. “And you lost her, despite there being only one road into town? How is that possible?”

“I can’t track a single heartbeat in a crowd. Nobody I ever heard of could do something like that.” Berod and his brother Jarner exchanged unhappy looks. “We drove up and down every street in the whole town, but there was no sign of a motorcycle anywhere. Either she kept going straight through town or someone’s hiding her. We looked for motorcycles, too, but she could’ve stashed it someplace. In a garage maybe.”

“You think?” Killing these two idiots right now wouldn’t further his cause at all, but he’d do so later. No use diluting the gene pool with fools. “Did our research on Jora Larth reveal any close friends within the town limits?”

Berod shook his head. “She’s on good terms with most folks, but no one in particular stood out. The diner is the local gathering place. We thought we’d stop there in the morning in case she showed up for breakfast.”

So they weren’t completely stupid. “Good idea. If necessary, one of you do the breakfast shift and the other lunch. We don’t want to raise suspicion by spending too many hours in such a small place.”

Berod started sidling toward the door. “We’ll be going now, unless you need us for something else.”

As if they were good for anything other than their muscles and very small brains. Still, it didn’t hurt to throw them a bone or two.

“I know you did your best tonight.” Such as it was. “Check out the diner. If she’s there, make no contact. Just report in, and I’ll take it from there. Whether or not you see her, get some rest afterward. It’s looking like another late night ahead of us.”

“Yes, sir.”

The two scuttled out the door, almost coming to blows over which one got to escape first. He waited until they were gone before dialing a familiar number. If they thought he was scary, they should meet the man he reported to.

“Sorry about the late call, sir, but you said you wanted me to report in no matter the hour. It was just as you suspected. Jora b’Larth is definitely the one who’s been interfering with the energy flow. I regret to say that she sensed my men approaching her cabin and managed to escape. I’ve instructed them to notify me as soon as they spot her. I will bring her in.”

The chill at the other end of the line made his gut twist in dread. Though he might kill his underlings for screwing up, but he’d make it quick and clean. He had an awful suspicion that his superior wouldn’t offer him the same courtesy.

“Good night, sir. I’ll be in touch as soon as I have any news.” Or he’d run for the nearest stretch of barrier and disappear back into his own world.

Chapter 4

Penn used the thin towel to dry his hair. “It’s probably best that you keep out of sight for now. I’ll go across the street and pick up breakfast while you shower.”

Jora hated feeling so dependent on the goodwill of this Paladin, but what choice did she have? She reached into her pack to dig out her wallet. “I’ll give you some money.”

“Don’t sweat it. We’ll settle up later.”

Penn disappeared out the door before she could protest. She was down two meals to none so far, not that Penn Sebastian seemed to be keeping score. Besides, her cash was limited until she could get to a bank machine, and that worried her. If the men who’d chased her last night were as well connected as she feared, they might be able to track her movements if she used her credit cards or an ATM.

She went into the bathroom to shower while he was at the diner. It was still steamy from his shower, and her wayward mind again imagined his hard warrior’s body under the stream of hot water.

Though he was her enemy, something about him appealed to her. Once he’d gotten past his initial shock that she was Kalith, he’d treated her with cautious courtesy, and even given up his comfortable bed for her.

It was hard to reconcile her parents’ description of what it meant to be a Paladin with this man. Maybe Penn was an exception to the norm, but she had no way of knowing that. The trouble was, she badly needed someone in her life whom she could trust, someone who could help shoulder this burden of worry she’d been carrying around for weeks. Right now, Penn Sebastian was the best candidate to fill that need. The only candidate.

She showered quickly and got dressed. After her clothes had been wadded up in her backpack for months, the best she could say about them was that they were clean. Since her thick hair would take forever to dry with the small hair dryer provided by the motel, she settled for braiding it.

She heard Penn moving around in the other room. Gathering up her things and her courage, she left the bathroom to face her Paladin accomplice.

He held out a Styrofoam container. “Hope scrambled eggs and hash browns are okay. I didn’t think to ask.”

“That will be fine. I’m a vegetarian, not vegan.”

She accepted the food and a carton of orange juice, then sank down onto the floor to eat. To her surprise, Penn joined her rather than sitting on the bed. He stretched out his long legs, opened up his own meal. The next few minutes passed in silence.

Finally he said, “That hit the spot. Did you get enough to eat?”

She nodded as she finished off the last bite of toast. “Plenty.”

“Good. I didn’t want to raise suspicions by ordering a lot more than a guy my size would normally eat.”

Jora stuffed her empty container into the bag he held out. “Why? Was someone acting suspicious?”

“No one stood out, but there was no way to know who belonged there and who didn’t. While I waited for the food, I drank a cup of coffee. I didn’t pick up on anyone paying special attention to who came and went.”

He paused to drink his juice before continuing. “Even so, with only the one place to eat in town, it would be a logical place for them to wait for you to show up.” Penn frowned. “They could also be keeping watch from outside the diner.”

Jora’s breakfast turned into a solid lump of tension in her stomach. “I never asked. Did you have a chance to read over the reports I gave you?”

Penn nodded. “Yeah, a couple of times. I’m going to call Devlin to see if he can send me some help.”

“Do you want me to step outside so you can talk to him in private?” She crossed her fingers that he’d say no. Standing out there exposed to the world would feel as if she had a target pinned to her chest.

“No, if Devlin has something to say to me that he doesn’t want you to hear, I’ll step outside or go sit in my truck. I don’t want you standing out there when we don’t know who’s watching.” He gathered up the rest of their trash and threw it into the wastebasket, then grabbed his cell phone.

To give him a little privacy, Jora went into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Then she washed out a few things and hung them to dry, leaving the water running the whole time. She could hear the deep murmur of Penn’s voice, but that was all.

She pulled the shower curtain to hide the undies she’d hung up to dry, then she rattled the door handle a bit to warn Penn that she was coming out.

The motel room was empty and she heard Penn’s voice coming from the parking lot. His angry voice. Pulling the curtain aside, she peeked out to see what was going on. Whoa—from the way he was waving one arm around and glaring, Penn Sebastian was seriously ticked off. He kicked a rock, sending it flying high in the air.

When he started to turn in her direction she quickly closed the curtain, not wanting him to think she was spying on him. What had him so upset? Did Devlin Bane not believe her? If that was the case, Penn Sebastian would undoubtedly disappear from her life as quickly as he’d entered it.

Though that should worry her, oddly all she felt was disappointment.

“Damn it, Devlin, why not?”

Fully aware of Jora in the bathroom, Penn decided to take this argument outside. “Look, I know you’re shorthanded, but I’m not asking you to send any Paladins as backup. Ask Barak if he’ll come and bring Lacey. Hell, I’d settle for just Larem.”

He held his phone out at arm’s length and could still hear Bane’s frustrated reply. “Damn it, Penn, I can’t pull Lacey off her duties without permission from the Regents. I already told you that I wanted this to fly under the radar.”

“I get that.” Penn stroked his short beard, trying to maintain some control. “But I can’t protect Jora and investigate this anomaly she’s talking about at the same time. And to do this job, I’m going to have to go underground to check out the rip in the barrier Jora found. That means no guns, just blades to fight with. How the hell am I supposed to do that?”

Devlin wasn’t just his superior; he was his friend as well. “Okay, you’re right. I’ll see about getting Barak and Larem heading in that direction by the end of the day. I’ll text you with their flight information.”

Shit, he’d forgotten that neither of the Kalith warriors could drive. “Fine, I’ll meet their plane. And I’m sorry to be such a demanding pain in the ass, Dev.”

“You are that, but it’s okay.” A heavy silence came from the other end of the line. “I have one more question for you, Penn. When were you going to tell me that Jora is Kalith, too?”

Shit, how was he supposed to answer that? But Devlin was like an old dog with a bone; he wouldn’t give up until he had the truth. Might as well give it to him.

“You know I was going to tell you, Devlin. It’s just that she’s . . .” He turned to face the closed drapes of his motel room.

“She’s what?” Devlin’s voice took on that quiet note that meant he was about to move in for the kill.

“She’s not like Barak and Larem, or even Lusahn. She’s this little bit of a thing, not a warrior like they are. What do you think is going to happen if the Regents find out she’s here? They might not order you to take her out, but we’re not the only Paladins on the planet.”

Finally Devlin sighed, sounding much put upon. “Okay, but that’s the last bit of information you withhold from me. If I find you’re censoring reports for any reason, you’re going to be wearing my boot print in a mighty uncomfortable place.”

Penn had to laugh.

“I mean it, Penn. I can’t do my job if you guys start holding out on me, especially for some woman you met less than twenty-four hours ago. When are you going to see her again?”

Penn was pretty sure Devlin wasn’t going to like finding out that Penn had moved her into his motel room for safekeeping. “She’s with me now. Jora has some of that Kalith mojo that Barak has, only different, and she said two men were stalking her through the woods last night. She had nowhere else to go, so she showed up at my motel room door after midnight.”

He sensed a major storm brewing on Devlin’s end of the conversation, so he kept talking, hoping to avoid the lightning bolts his friend was about to hurl in his direction.

“I decided to keep her under wraps until I can investigate the situation. Why don’t you make the arrangements for our two friends while Jora shows me around? I should have more information for you when I call in this afternoon. Say around four o’clock?”

He counted down from ten, hoping Devlin would just agree.

“Son of a bitch, Sebastian, are you trying to get yourself killed? That’s the only reason that would explain why you’d let a Kalith you don’t know a damn thing about get close enough to slit your throat in your sleep!”

Penn gritted his teeth; matching Devlin’s temper with his own would only fuel the flames. “I don’t have a death wish.” At least not anymore. “All I can say is that Jora isn’t like that; there’s not a whiff of crazy Other about her. I don’t know why I believe she’s not out to kill me, but I do.”

“That better be true, because you’re on your own in this mess until I can get your two buddies over there to help out. Keep your eyes open and do your thinking with the head on your shoulders, not that other one.”

“Yeah, you’d know all about that, wouldn’t you, Devlin? If I recall, that’s why we have Barak hanging around these days.”

The Kalith warrior had risked his life twice to save Laurel Young. Against all protocols and even the demands of his friends, Devlin had spared Barak’s life because the woman he loved had asked him to. Sometimes a man had to break the rules in order to live with himself.

“Shut the fuck up while you’re ahead, Sebastian. Like I said, just be careful.”

“I love you, too, big guy. Now let me do my job.” His voice turned cold. “And one more thing. If someone does come after Jora, they’ll have to go through me first.”

He disconnected the call. When he turned back toward the motel door he saw Jora standing there, looking confused.

“What?” he asked.

“You defended me to Devlin Bane even though you hardly know me, and then threatened anyone who might try to hurt me. Why would you do that? I’m your enemy.”

So Penn wasn’t the only one who found the whole situation confusing. “Technically, that road runs both directions. That didn’t seem to stop you from showing up on my doorstep last night when you needed a place to hide.”

“That was different.”

It wasn’t, and they both knew it. Rather than argue the point, he tried a different tack. “Right now we have a common enemy. There’s an old saying you may have heard, that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Works for me.”

She hesitated briefly before finally nodding. “When do you want to see the rift?”

“I’ll gather a few things and be ready to go.”

He brushed past her, all too aware of her feminine scent. Maybe it was just proximity, but the more time he spent in Jora’s company, the more he wanted to slam that motel door shut and lock the two of them inside for a week.

Images of the two of them tangled in the sheets, naked and sated, sent a powerful surge of heat through his veins. He risked a glance in Jora’s direction. He had a feeling she would gut him for such thoughts.

He quickly banked that particular fire and checked over his weapons. His sword and extra ammunition went into the duffel. Though his ability to use the blade effectively was limited, he’d feel naked near the barrier without it.

“Want to put your sword in with mine? It’s a little less obvious than having it stick out of the top of your backpack.”

She drew the blade. After a second’s hesitation, she held it out to him.

Penn studied the engraving on the blade and then gave the sword a couple of practice swings. “This is a beautifully made weapon.”

“It was my father’s,” she said with a wistful smile. “He was a master with it.”

“I’m guessing he taught you how to use it.” He ran a careful finger along the curve of the blade.

“Yes, he did. I even competed in fencing in college. Not quite the same as real fighting, but it helped keep my skills sharp.” She flashed him a shy smile. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a sparring partner. Maybe if we get a chance . . .”

Yeah, like he wanted an outsider to see how clumsy he was these days. His fighting prowess had always defined him as a Paladin and a man.

“I’m here to work. Not play.”

He stalked out into the parking lot, leaving Jora to follow.

Chapter 5

Jora stared out at the passing countryside, remaining silent unless she needed to give Penn directions. He answered in monosyllables if at all.

She glanced in his direction, noting the hard set to his jaw. One minute he’d been friendly enough, even defending her, then he’d turned cold and unapproachable. Was suggesting a workout crossing some mysterious boundary?

Men, she thought in disgust. Who can understand what goes on in those hard heads of theirs?

Not her, that was certain. Her experience with the opposite sex was very limited. She’d dated a few guys, but never anything serious. It was too hard to maintain a relationship and keep secrets. Over the years, she’d found it easier to keep things light and to break off with anyone who wanted more than a casual friendship.

Now she was with one of the few people in the world she didn’t have to guard every word with, and he wasn’t even speaking to her.

“Turn left onto that service drive up ahead. A short distance in, there’ll be a sign warning that the road is out ahead. I posted that myself, hoping to keep park personnel and tourists out of the area.”

Penn jerked his head in acknowledgment and steered his behemoth of a truck onto the gravel road. Eventually, the way narrowed down until the surrounding undergrowth brushed up against the sides of the truck.

When one particularly thick branch hit her door, she jumped. “I hope your paint job doesn’t get all scratched up. Maybe we should have picked up my SUV. It’s already broken in.”

Just as she spoke, they hit a rut that had both of them straining against their seat belts.

Penn actually laughed as the truck stabilized just in time to hit another one. “Don’t sweat it, Jora. You should have seen my last truck. There wasn’t a straight panel on it.”

“I’m glad you feel that way, because this is going to get worse the closer we get.”

They lapsed back into silence as Penn concentrated on easing the truck over the worst parts of the road, but at least the tension had disappeared. Finally, they reached the downed log that signaled the end of the road.

“From here on we walk. It’s a short hike.”

As Penn shut off the engine, he turned toward her with a frown. “I guess I should have asked if we needed to pack a lunch and some water.”

“We shouldn’t be here that long. I’ve got bottled water in my pack and a few granola bars. We won’t starve before we get back to civilization.”

“Glad you thought of it.” He slung his duffel over his shoulder. “It’s been a while since I’ve been out in the field. Devlin’s had me doing other things.”

From the way he said it, she knew there had to be a story there, but she was reluctant to pry. She settled her pack on her back and led the way through the trees.

As a geologist, she was used to spending large amounts of time out in the field by herself. Normally she checked in with park rangers to let them know where she’d be and when she expected to return. Lately, though, she’d been keeping her movements as secret as possible. She had no concrete reason to mistrust any of her coworkers, but she also didn’t want to arouse anyone’s suspicions.

Around the first bend, she stooped to study the ground.

Penn knelt beside her. “What are you seeing?”

She pointed to where some of the grass had been trampled. “Someone’s been through here since I last checked the barrier. The footprint is too large to be mine. It might not mean anything, but this is pretty far off the beaten track for tourists to be wandering around.”

Penn studied both sides of the trail. “My tracking skills were never great, but it looks as if there were at least two of them.”

Jora nodded. “I agree. The tracks aren’t from today, so we should be safe if we proceed carefully.”

Penn pulled out his gun and checked it over. His cold efficiency with the weapon gave her a chill, although it shouldn’t have. She’d grown up around swords and guns because her parents had felt the need to carry weapons of some kind wherever they went. Fear of being discovered by Paladins had never been far from their minds.

And yet here she was, miles from civilization and alone with a trained killer. It was too late now for second thoughts, though. If Penn turned on her now, there was little she could do to stop him. Better to forge ahead than worry about things that were out of her control.

She started walking again. “The entrance is just over that rise.” Right before cresting the low hill, she knelt down again, not wanting to provide a clear target to anyone on the other side. Penn joined her on the ground.

“Did you spot something or are you just being careful?” he asked quietly.

“Careful, for now.” She glanced at Penn. “Give me a few seconds of quiet to see if we’re alone.”

She closed her eyes, turning her vision inward. Normally her gift kicked right in, telling her what she needed to know about the life forces in the surrounding area. This time she had trouble pushing past the powerful presence sitting next to her. Penn’s pulse was strong, his energy running high, clearly a predator on the prowl.

It took considerable effort to move beyond him to pick up the scurry of small rodents and the press of feathered wings against the summer air. A moose and its twin calves were grazing a short distance away. As long she and Penn gave them a wide berth, the cow wouldn’t mind sharing its territory.

Now for the barrier itself. The surrounding rock seethed with growing tension. It had only been a few days since she’d last eased its burden; the pressure must be building at a faster rate for it to be this bad again. She did what she could at this distance to ease it some; she’d have to do more once they got inside.

Finally, she opened her eyes, the effort she’d just expended taking a heavy toll on her own energy level. Penn was standing guard over her and reached out to steady her when she staggered a bit after she stood up. He guided her to a handy boulder and pushed her to sit back down.

“Stay there and rest for a bit.” He rooted through her pack and brought out a bottle of water and a pair of granola bars. After popping the top on the bottle, he handed it to her.

“Drink up, and then eat a granola bar. You should feel better in a few minutes. My friend usually does.”

The water was warm, but it felt good going down. She made quick work of one of the granola bars. Curious about this friend of his, she asked, “Do you and he do this kind of thing often?”

Penn shrugged. “Barak and I help my sister lug her equipment up the side of the volcanoes in our area. Once in a while, he helps the mountain settle down a bit.”

“What does your sister think about you hanging out with aliens?” She kept her tone light.

Penn stopped scanning the horizon to glance down at her. “Since she married the guy, I don’t think she minds.”

Okay, that was a shocker. “Seriously? And you’re all right with that?”

“Working on it, but I suspect brothers feel that way no matter who the guy is. Or what.”

Penn pulled out a pair of binoculars to scan farther. “Barak was born and raised in Kalithia. He came across the barrier armed and ready to fight to the death, hoping to take as many of us as he could with him. Instead, he saved my boss’s woman. Not long after that, he damn near got himself killed saving my sister’s life. Even I’m not bastard enough to hate the guy after that.”

“I’d like to hear more of that story.” She took a bite of the second granola bar.

Penn shook his head. “No time for it now, but remind me. Or you can ask him to tell you. Devlin is arranging for Barak and our other resident Kalith hard-ass to head here. They should be here by tonight, tomorrow at the latest.”

The news that she was going to be facing two warriors from her homeworld put all her nerves on edge. Her parents had crossed the barrier all those years ago alone and scared. It had taken them years to scrape up the price of passage. They’d been warned by those in charge to lose themselves in the human population. Reaching out to others of their kind had been strictly forbidden.

Maybe because she’d been so young when they left their world behind, Jora had quickly adjusted to living among humans. Not so her parents. Although they’d been provided with effective new identities, her mother and father had become little better than recluses, only venturing out to work or buy necessities. She’d done her best to coax them into really living, but right up until their deaths, the fear of discovery had been too strong.

And now she was going to meet two Kalith males. One of them was obviously committed to Penn’s sister, but how about the other one? What would he think of her? Would she act too human for them? She’d always wondered how she’d fit in with those of her own kind.

“If you’re feeling better, we should get moving.” Penn offered her a hand up off the rock.

As she accepted his assistance, she glanced down at his arm and gasped. A vicious scar, thick and jagged, transected his right hand and wrist. Without thinking, she reached out with her free hand to trace what had to have been a horrific wound.

“Penn, your poor arm!”

He immediately jerked his hand free, fury laced with what she guessed was embarrassment in his eyes. “Let’s get moving. We don’t have all day.”

Figuring he’d prefer her silence to an apology, she stowed her water bottle and started off down the trail. As they walked, she couldn’t get the image of that scar out of her head. Judging from its size and location, Penn had come darn close to losing his hand to a sword blade. She didn’t have to ask how it had happened or whom he’d been fighting. It had to have been one of the Others, out-of-his-head crazy for the light of this world.

Her heart ached for Penn, though she doubted he’d want her sympathy. Was this the reason he hadn’t been out in the field other than to schlep equipment for his sister? She had so many questions.

She said quietly, “The entrance is just behind that cluster of bushes and boulders jutting out of the hillside.”

Penn knew he was being a jerk, but Jora’s horror when she spotted his scar had pissed him off big-time. He should be used to it by now; he still occasionally caught his friends looking at him with that same damn pity when they thought he wouldn’t notice. At least Jora had the excuse that she hadn’t known about it. The other Paladins had been there when the whole thing had happened.

When she started forward, Penn blocked her way. “Just a minute.”

He set down the duffel and pulled out her sword and handed it to her. “I’m hoping we won’t need these, but I’ve been around the barrier long enough to know we don’t want to be caught unprepared.”

Even after all the practicing he’d done, hefting his sword with his left hand still felt strange. Drawing a deep breath, he braced himself to tell her the truth.

“Look, I’m right-handed, but my wrist and hand haven’t healed enough for me to hold a sword very long. I’ve been training with my left, but it’s been an uphill battle.”

“Are you okay with guns?” Her matter-of-fact tone made it easier for him to answer.

“Crack shot with both hands.” He kept his eyes pinned on his sword. “I’m getting the mobility back in my hand, but I’m still working on regaining the strength.”

“I’m glad for you.” Jora gave him a brief smile before turning her attention back to her own weapons. “Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

Working with a female, even one as confident and competent as Jora, seemed strange to him. Ordinarily he and his buddies automatically traded off taking point and watching each other’s backs. But he didn’t want Jora to be the first one through the cave entrance, and he was just as reluctant to have her trailing along behind him.

She stopped when they reached the boulders. “There’s a nook just inside the entrance where I usually stash my pack. Some of the passages are pretty narrow, and it will be easier to maneuver without them.”

“Makes sense.”

He followed her inside and tossed his bag down beside hers as they waited for their eyes to adjust to the darkness. The familiar surge of adrenaline poured through him, ramping up his senses.

Leaning in close, he whispered near Jora’s ear, “Are we still the only ones in the area?”

After a few seconds, she answered. “So far, but the closer we get to the barrier, the more it will interfere with my ability to get clear readings.”

That didn’t surprise him. The barrier screwed up a lot of things.

She started forward again, sailing through openings that he had to duck down to clear. She set a pace that allowed them both to make their way without having to resort to flashlights, which would announce their presence if anyone was waiting up ahead.

“We’re almost there. The cavern opens up beyond that next turn, and the barrier is at the far end.”

There was no way he was going to let her lead the charge beyond this point. “Let me by you so I can take point.”

Jora lowered her sword and stepped to one side, pressing up against the wall to give Penn room to squeeze past. It was a tight fit, leaving barely a breath’s distance between them. The close proximity left him hyperaware of Jora’s warmth and filled his head with the feminine scent of her skin and hair. The effect on his own body was immediate and intense to the point of pain.

He wanted to curse and at the same time howl with relief that his hand wasn’t the only part of his body coming back to life. It was ironic that a Kalith had been responsible for his physical problems, and another was helping with the cure.

Now wasn’t the time for this. He was on a mission and couldn’t afford to screw it up with raging hormones. Time to get his head back in the right game.

Just past Jora, he paused to soak in the hum and buzz of the barrier. Each time a Paladin encountered a different portion of the surging current, it took some time to adjust to the new frequency. This one didn’t just feel different; it also felt wrong. Bracing himself for the usual lurch in his gut, Penn raised his sword, slipped the safety off his gun, and walked around the bend.

One look at the swirling, sickly greens and yellows had him reaching for the cave wall to steady himself.

“Son of a bitch! Would you look at that!”

Jora moved up to stand beside him as they both stared at the pulsing curtain of energy. After all the years of fighting at the barrier, he thought he’d seen everything. This took weird to a whole new level.

“Has it always looked like this?”

Jora shook her head. “My folks have been bringing me here for as long as I can remember. I think it reminded them of home.” She shifted restlessly. “I’ve always wondered if they might have tried to go back except for me. The light sickness runs pretty strongly in my father’s family, and they were afraid of the effect the growing darkness would have on me.”

She grimaced. “They always seemed a little sad after we visited this cave. Not me, though. The changing colors, each more beautiful than the next, always fascinated me. It was frustrating to not have anyone to share it with.”

There was nothing beautiful about what he was seeing. The dissonance of the frequency alone was enough to make him queasy. “You think that’s pretty?”

She shuddered. “Heck no! That’s what alerted me that something was wrong. I can hardly look at that putrid mess without wanting to hurl.”

She pointed toward the far edge of the barrier. “That sick color started on that side and has been spreading across the whole stretch over the past few weeks. It’s almost gangrenous.”

Penn started moving forward, hating the sick vibes he was getting, but someone had to check it out. Rather than stare at the pulsing colors, he studied the floor of the cavern. There were fresh scratches in the rock, as if something heavy had been dragged through recently. The only way into the cavern was the way that he and Jora had used, but there were no signs of the scratches past the center of the floor.

He didn’t like the leap in logic his mind just took: whoever was messing around in here had definitely come from the other side of the barrier. He pulled out his digital camera and took close-ups of the floor, the cavern, and the barrier itself. He’d e-mail the pictures to Devlin as soon as they got back to the motel; maybe someone at headquarters had seen something like this before and could make sense of it.

Jora stayed out of his way, dividing her attention between the passage behind them and that sick curtain of energy writhing on the far side of the cavern. After a bit, she asked, “So what do you think?”

“That you’re right.” He snapped another picture, this time including Jora in the frame. “Someone from the other side is screwing around over here. The only question is what they’re up to and why.”

He paced off the floor, making notes of the measurements. The size of the cavern probably didn’t mean jack shit in the grand scheme of things, but he wanted Devlin to have all the information he could give him.

While he worked, he was aware of Jora setting aside her sword and slowly approaching the barrier, her hands outstretched. He jotted down the last few measurements before picking up his own weapon and positioning himself where he could guard her back. She’d be defenseless until she broke off contact with the energies she was attempting to manipulate.

Already, there were bands of more healthy looking colors slowly spreading across the thirty-foot barrier. Despite the cool cave air, Jora’s forehead was dotted with beads of sweat and there were slight tremors in her hands.

He hoped she didn’t overextend herself, because carrying her out of this damn place would be awkward, not to mention dangerous. He’d have to get her out first and then return for their weapons. No matter how you looked at it, the situation would suck big-time.

If she didn’t break it off soon, he’d have to risk yanking her out of her trancelike state. He counted off the seconds. Her pale complexion was now chalky white and the shaking was far worse. He crossed the cavern floor and gingerly reached out to touch her shoulder.

“Jora?”

No response.

He set his sword on the floor and put both hands on her shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze.

“Jora, let it go. Please.” When that didn’t work, he gave her a shake and barked out, “Jora! Wake up, dammit!”

She blinked twice and then jerked around to look up at him in confusion. “Penn?”

When a high-pitched whine started up, her gaze whipped back around to the barrier. “Oh, God, it’s going feral!”

The entire cave shuddered and shook. Penn swept Jora up in his arms and ran back toward the passage, praying like hell that he hadn’t just gotten them both killed.

Chapter 6

“Put me down, Penn!”

Jora kicked her feet, trying to break free of his arms before it was too late. “I need to stop this.”

She must have gotten through to him because he stopped moving long enough to set her down on her feet. “We need to keep moving before this whole thing comes down on our heads!”

He reached for her hand, probably intending to drag her back down the passage toward the entrance. They’d never make it that far, not unless she did something damn quick to stabilize the shifting rock beneath their feet.

She grabbed on to the nearest outcropping and held on for dear life. “Let me do this before it’s too late! Please, I’ve got to at least try. You keep moving, and I’ll catch up when I can.”

“No way am I leaving you in here to face this alone.” He crossed his arms over his chest and blocked the passage back toward the barrier.

Stubborn jerk! “Fine, but don’t interfere this time. I’ll let you know when it’s safe for me to let go.”

She leaned into the rock, putting her full body weight against it, and concentrated on drawing off the pressure building beneath the surface. The energy bled out of the rock into her hands, a trickle at first, then with building momentum. When she had absorbed as much as she could without causing permanent damage, she opened herself up as a conduit to let the stress pour through her and back out into the rock, diffusing it over a greater area.

All that mattered was easing the worst of the faults in the rock and mending the distortions in the barrier itself. She stabilized her immediate surroundings, buying time for Penn and his friends to find out what was going on between Kalithia and this world. Finally, when the last little bit of energy passed through her, she slowly released the death grip she had on the rock.

She sagged as the last of the pressure dissipated, sending her to her knees. Penn caught her before she hit the floor. For the second time, she was in his arms, cuddled close against his chest. And she liked it. A lot.

Still dazed, she rubbed her cheek against his soft cotton shirt. “Wow, I could get used to this. I really like men with muscles like yours.”

Penn’s laugh rumbled through his chest under her ear. She liked that, too. What would his beard feel like against her skin? She tested it with her fingertips. Wow, it was soft and prickly at the same time.

Jora cupped the side of his face with her palm. “Penn, do women like kissing men with beards? I’ve never done it myself, but I’ve always wondered.”

“Let’s get out of here.” His voice sounded a bit strained as he sidestepped his way down the passage, at times struggling to avoid banging her head on the cave wall.

Finally, they reached the entrance. Penn set her back down on her feet because there was no way he could maneuver the two of them out the narrow opening. Her legs were feeling more solid, but he still had to support her until they were outside.

She looked up at the sky, blinking in the sudden brightness. The sun had already passed its zenith and was making its way to the west. How long had they been inside the cave?

Before she could ask, she realized that Penn was still holding her arms with his hands, his eyes focused on her face. No, her mouth. What was he— His mouth came crashing down on hers, and the world once again shifted under her feet.

His lips were soft but oh, so demanding. She sighed with the sweetness of his kiss, inviting him to plunder her mouth with a sweep of his tongue. Oh, yes. He did taste as good as he looked, and his beard gently abraded her skin, setting all her nerve endings on fire.

She dug her fingers into the powerful muscles in his upper arms and leaned into him. The difference in their heights made the fit a bit awkward, but he fixed that by lifting her high up against his chest. She wrapped her legs around his hips, bringing her aching core in direct contact with how much Penn wanted her right at that moment. Whoa, mama!

Her breath came in ragged gasps as his hands explored her, leaving only heat and need in their trail. If they didn’t stop soon, she was going to beg him to lay her down and really get serious about this.

He finally broke off the kiss, his breathing sounding as if he’d been running sprints. For a horrid second, she felt the first tendrils of embarrassment. How could she have lost control like this with a man who was a total stranger?

Then his bright blue eyes melted as small crinkles appeared at the corners. “I’ve been trapped underground with tremors before and been glad to make it out alive. I’ve gotta tell you, though, kissing you beats high-fiving with my buddies hands down.”

Penn tugged her close for another hug, this one friendly rather than hot. “Are you all right? That was quite some show you put on in there.”

She did a quick assessment. “I’ve never channeled that much energy before, but I’m feeling better now.”

“I was getting worried about how long that went on. Why don’t you rest for a few minutes? We still have to hike back to my truck.”

Before she could protest, he pressed a bottle of water and another granola bar into her hands. “You sit here while I go back for our things. I won’t be gone long.”

He disappeared back into the cavern, leaving her wondering if they’d pick up where they’d left off, once they got back to the motel. As she bit into the chewy bar, she decided that it would be a crying shame if they didn’t.

•   •   •

Sitting on the edge of his bunk, Tarl tugged on the heavy hiking boots and pulled the laces tight. He was no fan of the great outdoors, but this rustic cabin was barely a step up from sleeping in the cave. At least he had the best equipment the human world could provide.

His men hadn’t reported back, which probably meant there’d been no progress made in finding Jora b’Larth.

As far as he’d been able to ascertain, she’d never been more than a couple of hundred miles from here, so it was unlikely that she’d taken off to visit some friend or relative. That narrowed the search, but there were hundreds of square miles where she could be hiding in the park itself. Add the rest of the surrounding area, and it was like looking for the proverbial needle in the haystack. Even with her distinctive looks, she could still blend into the thronging masses who visited the park every day.

Well, if he couldn’t find her, maybe he could find a way to make her come looking for him. He poked and prodded that idea, trying to decide if he was actually onto something or just getting more desperate.

A knock came at the door and he crossed the room. Even through the thick metal, he could sense the sweating fear of his two inept assistants.

He swung the door open and motioned them in. No matter how bad the news was, he didn’t want it broadcast where anyone could hear them. Then he turned to face them.

“Well?”

“We sat at the diner until the owner asked if he should install a plaque with our names on it, but there’s still no sign of the Larth woman. I chatted up the waitress, but she wasn’t much help.”

Then he straightened his shoulders. “There was one thing, though. I overheard one of the maids from the motel telling her boyfriend about cleaning a room that had a motorcycle parked in it.”

Okay, he might let these two live to see their next birthdays. “Were you able to get the room number?”

“No, but there aren’t many people staying over at the motel. Most of the rooms clear out every day, so there’s only a handful to check.”

“Good. Go do that and report back to me tonight. Leave a voice mail if I don’t answer.” His cell phone didn’t get reception near the barrier.

His accomplices from Kalithia were supposed to make contact in the next few nights, and he hoped it was soon. He hated walking through the woods at night to begin with, and the longer they dragged this out, the more he risked discovery.

Luckily, there weren’t any Paladins stationed in the area. If those bastards caught wind of what was going on, there would be hell to pay. Siphoning off the geothermic energy from beneath Yellowstone was very chancy. Slow and steady was the only feasible plan. But if someone got twitchy and tried to rush the process, the backlash could be catastrophic planet-wide. Who knew what would happen if the heat and light from the volcanic caldera beneath the park broke through the barrier and flooded his homeworld?

“Why don’t you two take a break. After you’ve had a chance to eat dinner, stake out the motel and see if you can tell where the woman went to ground with her motorcycle. I’d tell you to bribe the desk clerk, but there’s no chance Jora would have checked in under her own name.”

Berod and Jarner both nodded, obviously relieved that he wasn’t holding them responsible for the Kalith woman still being unaccounted for.

But they’d find her soon enough. He suspected she was the one who had been counteracting his attempts to destabilize the barrier, so she had to be spending time nearby. Eventually their paths would cross and her interference would end.

Permanently.

Penn slowed down to steer around another rut in the road; Jora was curled up against the passenger door sound asleep. Damn the woman, anyway. He’d had to half carry, half drag her all the way back to the truck. Clearly she’d overextended herself to get both of them out of the cavern safely. When she was rested and back up to full strength, the two of them were going to have a long talk.

If they were going to work together, it had to be as partners, meaning full disclosure. He needed to know what she could do and what she couldn’t, and the price she paid for even trying. Hell, had he been the one to trigger the barrier going . . . what had she called it? Feral. That was something he’d have to talk to Barak about. Maybe it was just another way of saying the barrier was failing, but maybe not.

Either way, there had to be a safe way to bring her back out of the trance she went into while manipulating the energy in the barrier and the surrounding rock. He’d been about to give up and yank her hands away from the side of the cave when she finally broke off contact herself.

He shuddered. If he hadn’t caught her, she’d have ended up in a heap on the floor of the cave. How long would she have lain there if she’d been alone? Worse yet, what if the bastards who were screwing around with the barrier had shown up while she was unconscious?

As the road finally smoothed out, he glanced at the woman sleeping so peacefully beside him. For such a little thing, she sure wielded a passel of power. He knew such gifts were rare; it would be interesting to see what Barak thought about what Jora had done today.

Once he reached the highway, he stopped and pulled out his phone. Sure enough, Devlin had left him a series of voice mails. Just as he feared, it had been too late to get Barak and Larem on today’s flight. It would be tomorrow afternoon before they landed in Bozeman, about a three-hour drive from the motel. He considered his options. His gut was telling him the motel wasn’t the best choice. Wolf Cave was barely a square mile in size, meaning strangers stuck out, especially if they stayed around for more than a day or two. He had enough stuff in his duffel to make it through the night, and Jora had her pack with her, so they should be fine. If they were missing anything, well, that’s what stores were for. They’d drive into Bozeman, get a room and some sleep.

He glanced at his sleeping companion, remembering that kiss they’d shared outside the cave. Hot damn, that had been flat-out amazing. If Jora hadn’t been acting punch drunk, he might have seen just how far she was willing to go. Sex alfresco had never been at the top of his fantasy list, but he was willing to be flexible. She might come after him with her father’s sword for thinking that way, but life was full of risks.

So, onward to Bozeman. His decision made, he turned on the radio and settled back to enjoy the drive.

Jora had barely stirred in the three hours they’d been driving. Penn didn’t know if she was always that pale, or if it was a side effect of bonding with the mountain, or whatever the hell she’d been doing in the cavern.

According to the sign he’d just passed, they’d be reaching the outskirts of Bozeman in the next few minutes. Once he spotted a likely motel, he’d try waking her up.

At they crossed the city limits, Jora stirred and sat up, going from groggy to alert in the blink of an eye.

She stared out the window with a frown. “Where exactly are we?”

“Bozeman. My friends will be arriving tomorrow, so I thought we’d wait for them here rather than back in Wolf Cave. Since someone’s looking for you, I figured we’d be better off not going back to that same motel room tonight.”

Jora studied him for a minute before nodding. “I’m sorry to be such a bother.”

“It’s not your fault. Besides, if you hadn’t called Devlin, we wouldn’t have known there was a problem until it was too late.” Penn smiled at her. “Now we’ve got a fighting chance to stop the bastards.”

“We can only hope.” She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, as if the potential for disaster had sent a chill through her.

“I thought we’d get a motel room first and then look for some dinner. I’m about ready to eat my duffel.” He forced himself to add, “If you’d prefer, we can get two rooms, but I’d rather stay closer to you in case those guys manage to find us.”

“What are the chances of that happening?”

He thought about it. “It seems pretty unlikely, but it all depends on how they were tracking you.”

The reasons he’d given her were true, but the real reason he wanted her sleeping in the same room had to do with the kiss they’d shared.

She reached out to take his hand in hers. “I’ll sleep better knowing you’re with me.”

Suddenly the evening was filled with possibilities. He spotted a motel with a restaurant ahead on the right. He drove around the block, making sure that no one was following them. Deciding they were in the clear, he pulled into the parking lot and drove around to the back to park.

“Would you mind waiting in the truck? As far as we know, no one is looking for a man traveling alone.”

“I’ll be fine.”

He hated leaving Jora by herself for even a few minutes, though. He leaned over to retrieve his guns from the glove box, where he’d stashed them earlier. After handing Jora one, he stuck the other into the waistband of his jeans and pulled his shirt down to cover it.

“I hope you won’t need that, but I’ll feel better knowing you’ve got it.”

Jora checked the gun with quick efficiency and put it back in the glove box, within easy reach. “Thanks, Penn. Not just for the gun, but for everything.”

“Don’t sweat it.”

Then he surprised them both by leaning over to give her a quick kiss. When he started to pull back, she captured his face with both hands and kissed him back with interest. There was no way he wanted to be the one to break it off, but if he didn’t get out of the truck right then, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to.

He brushed her hair back from her face as he reluctantly reached for the door handle. “Hold that thought. I’ll hurry.”

Her smile was a promise of heat and temptation. “See that you do.”

Penn took off at a ground-eating lope, all masculine strength and grace, and flashed her a grin as he turned the corner to walk back to the office. She drew a deep breath and leaned her head back. What was she thinking?

She’d never been the kind of woman who slept with a man right away, yet she was seriously considering getting naked with one she’d barely known for twenty-four hours. Not just any man, either, but a Paladin, for God’s sake!

Maybe she’d seriously fried her brain by linking with the barrier for so long, but there was something about Penn Sebastian that drew her as no other man ever had. Partly it was because she didn’t have to pretend around him, but it went far deeper than that.

She’d spent so much of her life alone. She’d grown up with her parents’ constant fear of discovery, which left the three of them isolated from the rest of the town. She’d gone to college right here in Bozeman, barely far enough from her parents to really be on her own. As much as she wanted to explore the world, she couldn’t have abandoned her parents.

She’d never felt comfortable bringing friends to the house, which had made her feel guilty about accepting invitations from friends since she couldn’t reciprocate. And the need to watch every word made maintaining friendships difficult, so it was no wonder she’d earned a reputation for being standoffish and a loner.

With Penn, she could simply be herself. He not only knew she was different, he lived with the same burden of secrecy that she did. Together they could let down their guards, and simply be a man and a woman, with all the undercurrents that could generate.

She caught herself tracing her lips with a fingertip, remembering the touch and taste of Penn Sebastian’s kiss. Undercurrents, indeed. Despite the power that his sleek muscles promised, he’d treated her with such care, his control impressive. What would it take to make him lose all control with a lover? She hoped to find out.

The sound of footsteps snapped Jora out of her reverie, and her hand automatically reached for the gun. When she spotted Penn heading for the truck, she returned the weapon and waited for him to join her.

“Well?” she asked as he climbed in.

“We’ve got a room with a small kitchen on the top floor. The clerk said that was the closest door,” Penn said, pointing toward the other end of the parking lot. “I also reserved the adjoining room for Barak and Larem for tomorrow night.”

“Sounds good.”

Penn drove the truck down to the door, and they grabbed their meager luggage and headed into the motel. The closer they got to their room, the more nervous Jora became. What would happen once they were inside?

Penn handed her a magnetic card key. “Let’s dump our stuff and then go check out the restaurant.”

“Good thinking,” she agreed as he opened the door with his own key and stood back to let her walk past him.

The room was immaculate and bigger than she had expected—mainly because there was just one king-size bed.

Penn immediately picked up on her tension as he dropped his bag in the corner. “Don’t worry, Jora, I’m not assuming anything. The clerk would have thought it odd if I requested two beds when I told him I was alone. The floor will be fine for me.”

That was all it took. She walked straight toward him, sighing with pleasure as his arms wrapped around her. “I’m holding you to the promise to feed me. We’ll figure everything else out after we’ve eaten.”

He rested his chin on the top of her head, keeping the embrace friendly. “That’s a deal. We can also swing by the hopping center to pick up anything we’re missing on the way back.”

“Perfect.” Reluctantly, she stepped away. “Let’s go check out that restaurant.”

Chapter 7

An hour later, Penn had satisfied one of his body’s most pressing needs. He’d ordered the biggest, rarest steak the restaurant had to offer. Jora had merely rolled her eyes and settled for a grilled veggie sandwich and a large salad. He’d accused her of grazing instead of eating, but she’d taken his teasing with good humor.

Now they were cruising the local discount store to stock up on a few things. While she headed for the clothing department, he’d made a beeline for the pharmacy for a box of condoms. He didn’t want to presume, but neither did he want to risk not being prepared.

He also picked up a few groceries since their room had a small fridge and a stove. The less time they spent out in public, the better. Besides, breakfast in bed sounded pretty damn good to him. He got in line to pay for his purchases, wanting to keep that one little item secret until he knew for sure he’d done the right thing by purchasing it.

Once he got through the line, he looked around for Jora. Where was she? She’d said she only needed a couple of toiletries and a couple of items of clothing. If she didn’t appear soon, he’d go hunt her down.

He was about to do just that when he finally spotted her heading toward the checkout counter. He waved to get her attention. She gave him a quick nod as she unloaded her hand basket. Odd. What had she picked up that had her blushing?

Rather than crowd her, he waited for her near the door, figuring he’d find out once they were back in the room. Still, the possibilities had his mind venturing into territory better left unexplored. The thought of getting naked with Jora was having a predictable effect on his body, one that would make concentrating on anything else—such as driving—difficult.

The sun had gone down while they’d eaten dinner, and it was late enough now that the parking lot was pretty empty. He automatically scanned the area for anyone who might be paying undue attention to them.

“Did you find everything you needed?” He frowned. “I meant to ask if you needed any money.”

She shook her head. “Thanks for asking, but I had enough for all of this. Besides, you’ve already paid for too much.”

“Don’t sweat it.” Honesty had him adding, “In truth, my boss is footing the bill for most of it. And he’d rather we use cash so it can’t be tracked.”

Jora stashed her bags on the floor at her feet. “That’s why I’ve been reluctant to use plastic. Until we know who’s behind all of this, it’s safer to assume they can track any transactions.”

As they drove the short distance back to the motel, he could feel tension coming from the other side of the cab. Was she having second thoughts about sharing the room or sharing the bed? He couldn’t blame her if she was. This situation had thrown them together with little chance to really get to know each other.

Maybe under different circumstances, they could have their time getting acquainted and let nature take its course. Instead, in less than two days she’d been driven out of her home and forced to take refuge with a total stranger. Then there was that whole mess in the cavern. Without her intervention, they both could have died under tons of rock.

It was no wonder she was looking a bit ragged. He had no business thinking about getting her into bed for anything but sleep—dammit!

He parked the truck, then said, “I’m feeling a bit restless, so after I take my stuff in, I’m going for a walk. Don’t wait up for me.”

“But I thought . . .” Her voice trailed off, then she said, “Be careful out there. I’ll leave a light on for you.”

“Don’t bother. I see pretty well in the dark.”

“Fine. Have a nice time.”

Was that disappointment in her voice? Probably just wishful thinking on his part. She followed him inside, and once they were in the room she set her things down. “How long do you think you’ll be gone?”

Once again there was a note in her voice that he couldn’t quite recognize. He waited for her to look at him so he could gauge what was going on in that pretty head of hers. “Jora, would you rather I not go out?”

Her eyes slid to the side. “No, that’s fine. We could both use a little time apart.”

She didn’t sound very convincing. Short of calling her on it, he had little choice but to go for his unwanted walk.

As soon as he was out in the hall, he knew he was making a mistake. He paced down the hall and back, taking plenty of time to think this through. Jora b’Larth was Kalith, despite having grown up in his world. She didn’t trust Paladins, not even him, which was smart thinking on her part. He had only her word that she wasn’t the one screwing around with the barrier and the caldera that simmered beneath Yellowstone. Maybe she’d been trying to manipulate the energy herself, and bit off more than her personal mojo could handle by itself.

She had little in common with the women he’d dated in the past. They’d all known going in that they’d share a few laughs, scratch a mutual itch, and then go their separate ways. There was far too much innocence in Jora’s pretty gray eyes for him to lightly take the next step with her. If they crossed that line, it had to be because he thought they had a future together.

He stared down at his right hand as he flexed it, feeling the tight tug of the tendons. Until he knew if it would ever heal, he couldn’t plan beyond the next day.

The weight of an uncertain future pressed down on him—stretching out before him, filled with no purpose, barely existing as his friends lived and died for the cause.

God, sometimes he wished that he’d died from the wound that night or at the end of a needle full of toxins because there was too little of him left to save. It was a helluva thing to think, but it was the truth.

He stood outside the door to their room. Thanks to his enhanced Paladin DNA, he could feel Jora moving around inside, hear her heart beat, and even sense her pain. Or maybe it was his own that he was feeling. Suddenly the night air seemed a whole lot better than spinning his wheels in nowhere land.

He slammed the bar that opened the door to the parking lot. Abusing a piece of metal was better than punching someone—or taking Jora to bed because he so desperately needed to feel something besides pain again.

He hit the parking lot with no destination in mind, already breathing as hard as if he’d been running for miles. To the right lay quiet neighborhoods, with only pools of light from the streetlights. Down to the left he could see the flash of neon lights, maybe from a bar.

Well, if he couldn’t hold a willing woman in his arms, at least he could drown his sorrows. But the tiny voice of his conscience reminded him that his duty was to stand guard over Jora b’Larth, and he kept going past the neighborhood tavern, counting off the minutes until he figured it was safe to return. Surely Jora would be sound asleep by now. With luck, he’d be able to slip into their room unheard, snag a pillow off the bed, and curl up on the floor, with the extra blanket.

Come morning, he’d get Jora her own room or at least one with two beds. Her alien bloodlines should’ve been enough to mark her as off-limits, but what his mind was telling him and what his body was demanding were two separate things.

He trudged the last block back to the motel, taking satisfaction in knowing that the miles he’d walked had left him numb and ready to sleep. Once Barak and Larem were there to act as a buffer, it would be easier to control this burning need to bed Jora.

Jora sat up to straighten the tangled sheets and blanket. Despite the long, hot bath and cup of herbal tea, she just couldn’t unwind enough to sleep.

Where was Penn? She wanted him—not just back in the room, but in her bed. Which was stupid, since he’d obviously lost interest in her. He couldn’t wait to get away from her fast enough.

It was amazing how much that rejection had hurt, even though she’d been having second thoughts, too. But she now knew exactly how it felt to be wrapped up in those powerful arms, to be cuddled up against his chest, and her body wanted more. Badly.

She tried to concentrate instead on what she was doing, and got out of the bed to pick up the pillows that had fallen to the floor.

The door opened with no notice, surprising a small shriek out of her. She spun around, clutching the pillow in front of her as if it would protect her from an attack. The light next to the door flipped on, making her blink against the sudden brightness.

“Penn?”

“Yeah. Sorry if I woke you.” His voice sounded rough. Tired, maybe.

“You didn’t. I had trouble relaxing, and managed to tear the bed up.”

His dark blue eyes looked past her at the bed, then back to her face. “Why couldn’t you sleep?”

How should she answer? Well, she’d been honest with him until now and saw no reason to change that. “I was waiting for you.”

“I’m sorry to have kept you up.” He moved farther into the room.

She took a few brave steps forward herself. “Why did you stay gone so long?”

“I thought you might want a chance to . . . I wanted . . . I was afraid . . .”

She wasn’t going to let him off easy. “What were you afraid of, Penn? That I was going to jump your bones first chance I got? A simple ‘not interested’ would have been enough.”

“It’s not that.” He was but a few feet away, his hands fisting.

She flung the pillow at him in frustration, leaving her standing there in her new oversized sleep shirt. “Then why?”

Penn snagged the pillow out of the air and tossed it aside, staring down at her bare legs. “Because I want to be fair with you, Jora. Yes, I wanted to crawl into the bed with you and see where it took us. I still do, but I can’t offer you anything but a few hours of mindless sex. A woman like you shouldn’t have to settle for that.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “A woman like me? What’s that supposed to mean? Because I’m alien, an Other? Or because I’m short?”

He glowered at her. “Don’t be ridiculous. That’s not what I meant. You’re not like my usual dates—you’re a nice woman.”

That did it. “You won’t sleep with me because I’m too nice? Is that code for you think I can’t satisfy you?”

Planting her hands on her hips, Jora stalked over to him. “Well, listen here, Paladin: I would rock your world. And since you’re too damn stupid to figure that out yourself, I’ll just have to prove it to you.”

She looked an enraged Paladin straight in the eye. “Where do you want me to start?”

With her heart beating double time, she blatantly checked him out from head to toe. Realizing that she was actually licking her lips, she decided that maybe she’d gone a little over the top. What if he really wasn’t interested?

“Uh, Penn, I . . .”

She wasn’t sure what she’d been about to say, but he never gave her a chance to finish. Using those lightning-fast reflexes that Paladins were known for, Penn’s hands snapped out to grab her arms and snatched her up against his chest. Then with a sexy grin, he swept her up in his arms and headed for the bed. He lowered her down to the bed with tender care, then his much bigger body was pressing down on hers. He nudged her legs apart, settling the impressive bulge behind his zipper right where she needed it, and Penn rocked against her with a delicious swivel of his hips.

She dug her heels into the back of his thighs as she tangled her fingers in his hair and culled his mouth down to hers. Their tongues tangled and teased as his callused hands traced the curve of her hips, lifting her even more securely against him.

“Too many clothes!” she managed to say between kisses. “Get rid of them!”

Smoking-hot laughter filled Penn’s voice when he asked, “Mine or yours?”

“Both!”

He rolled to the side to help her pull off her sleep shirt and tossed it aside. Penn immediately lowered his mouth to her breasts, working her nipples into tight points. The tugging sensation of his lips and tongue had a direct connection to her feminine core. She groaned and pressed her thighs together, trying to ease the ache.

Penn smiled against her breast. “Let me help with that.” He eased his hand beneath the lacy thong she’d bought just for him and teased her slick folds with his wickedly clever fingers.

“Oh, yes!” she moaned.

Needing his skin against hers, she yanked his shirt free so she could feel all those wonderful muscles with her hands.

When she dragged her nails down his spine, Penn shivered and then pinned her hands over her head. If they didn’t slow this down, it would be over before they got to the main event.

“Hold that thought.”

He rolled off the bed and rooted through the shopping bags, pulled out the box of condoms he’d bought, and cursed as the cellophane wrapper defied his overanxious fingers.

When he finally managed to tear it off, he spilled the contents out onto the floor. No doubt he was really impressing Jora with his smooth moves. He grabbed up a handful of the packets and tossed all but one onto the bedside table before risking a look in her direction.

“Why don’t you give me that while you dispense with your clothes?” she asked. When he did so, she sat up to watch him.

No woman had ever shown such pleasure in watching him shed his shirt and jeans. When he tugged down his boxers, her eyes widened as she let out a long, slow breath. Was that approval? He thought so. He hoped so.

He knelt on the bed and she quickly ripped open the foil packet and sheathed his cock, not trusting his control another second. This was going to be good. Better than good. He just knew it.

Even so, he needed to make sure this was really what she wanted. “Are you ready for this?”

Jora’s answering smile was everything he’d wished for. “I think I’ve been ready for this moment my whole life.”

He swallowed hard, not knowing what to say to that. He settled for showing her how special this was for him by making it as perfect for her as he could. He started by kissing her long and slow and deep, showing her with light touches and soft squeezes how much her body pleased him.

Finally, when both of them were breathing hard and frantic with need, he settled between her legs and positioned himself.

As petite as Jora was, it was going to be a tight fit. He raised up over her, bracing himself on his elbows. “I’ll try to go slow. If it’s too much, let me know.”

She bit her lower lip as he pressed forward, stopping a few times to let her body adjust. His hold on his sanity was pretty damn fragile by the time he was fully seated inside her warm welcome. The connection between them was amazing, as if the world had shifted on its axis and was finally right.

Cupping his face in her hands, Jora slowly rocked her hips, meeting his thrusts with hers. Oh, yeah, this was good. He gradually picked up speed, still keeping a close rein on the power behind his movements.

Soon Jora was arching her back, her hands digging into his shoulders. “Don’t hold back, Penn! Please!”

Her heartfelt plea shattered his control, and his hips moved like a pile driver running at top speed. The slap of his flesh against hers, the sexy catch in her throat as he took her, the pressure building in his brain and in his balls. . . . There was nothing left of the universe beyond this bed as they strained for completion. When that pure joy finally washed over them both, he had no idea where he left off and Jora started. He only knew that this was the best, most perfect moment he’d ever had.

And that scared him more than facing a dozen crazed Others with swords in their hands and death in their eyes.

Chapter 8

Tarl kicked a rock and sent it flying across the cavern to bounce off the barrier. He stared at the bright colors swirling through the field of energy and cursed long and loud. The damn thing was healthy again; all of his hard work was undone. Now he had to start over from scratch and hope his people on the other side were preparing to do the same.

That stupid interfering bitch must have been here again. It was the only possible explanation. While his men had been out chasing their tails looking for her, she’d been back here wrecking his best work. Did she have any idea how hard it was to balance the damage he did to the barrier so that it was poised to fail with only the lightest of touches, but would remain intact until that moment arrived?

Every time he attempted that maneuver, the entire area became more and more unstable. All he wanted to do was create a permanent vent between this world and his to siphon off some of Earth’s plentiful energy into his light-starved world. He had no desire to set off the caldera underlying Yellowstone; that would kill off most of this world in a matter of days. And no one got rich when everyone dies.

He and his friends weren’t crazy, just greedy. So until they found Jora b’Larth, he’d have to post guards. The cost wasn’t coming out of his share though. After all, he was the one taking all the risks. There were only three Kalith on this side of the barrier—himself and his two associates. The rest of them huddled in the darkness on the other side, scuttling across to wield their equipment whenever he managed to bring the barrier down.

Drawing a deep breath, he positioned himself directly in front of the barrier with his palms out. His magic worked better with his eyes shut, leaving him more vulnerable to attack, so he listened to the silence first, weighing it against previous visits. He was definitely alone—at least on this side of the barrier.

Time to get started. Chanting under his breath, he concentrated on peeling back the bright colors and replacing them with ugly shades of green and black. Working with the energy was costly, robbing him of his usual vitality and leaving him shaking with exhaustion by the time he’d managed to damage less than a quarter of the barrier.

He’d have to be satisfied with that for now. Tomorrow morning he would return and bring his men for backup. Neither of them were accustomed to living in the outdoors, but they’d have to suck it up for the cause.

He sank down onto the cavern floor to rest. It was taking longer and longer for him to recuperate from his efforts. Once he could control the shaking in his hands, he dragged his pack over and pulled out his makeshift meal of beef jerky and cheese. His family would be horrified to find out that he’d become a carnivore on this side of the barrier, but animal protein restored his energy faster than fruit and vegetables.

He’d developed a taste for rare steaks, finding the idea that he was absorbing life energy directly from the source appealing. All of which brought him full circle back to Jora b’Larth. She was just another cow in the herd, ready to be culled for his benefit.

Feeling far better than he had a few minutes ago, he gathered up his trash, not wanting to leave any trace in the cavern before making the long trudge back to his cabin. Once he had a chance to clean up and eat a proper meal, he’d contact his men one last time before retiring for the night.

Time was running out, and each minute that Jora evaded capture made it that much harder to complete his mission. If he didn’t succeed soon, those he reported to would become increasingly displeased with his efforts. And if that happened, the hunter would quickly become the hunted.

Jora hovered halfway between sleep and alert, cocooned in the warmth of the blankets and Penn’s arms. Reality hovered outside their motel room and she was in no hurry to face it. But at least they’d soon have more help in hunting down whoever was attacking the barrier.

“You’re thinking way too hard.” Penn’s words whispered against the back of her neck, making her shiver. His arm snaked around her waist and he settled his warmth weight more firmly against her back.

She loved being cradled so gently; Penn’s strength was a comfort she had no words for. The past few hours had been amazing—though Penn had withdrawn briefly after the first time. The expression on his face had been unsettling.

But then he’d kissed her, gradually rekindling the fire. They’d taken their time, wooing instead of taking, coaxing instead of demanding. The slide of his body over hers, in hers, had been slow and perfect. And oh, did her warrior lover know how to kiss.

Penn moved away to tug her onto her back, then propped himself up on one elbow and studied her face. “What has your heart racing at this ungodly hour?”

She smiled as she reached up to trace his lips with her fingertip. “I was thinking what an incredible kisser you are.”

He nibbled at her finger. “Really?”

“Really.”

A great deal of masculine satisfaction gleamed in his eyes as his hand ran down her body, leaving her nerve endings tingling. “Is there anything else I do really well?”

“I’m not sure I should stroke your ego any more than I already have,” she teased.

That sexy pirate smile was back. “Fine with me. I’ve got something else I’d rather you stroked, anyway.”

He caught her hand and dragged it down beneath the covers. She rolled toward him, trying out a few different holds and techniques to see which he liked best. It was hard to tell, because his eyes seemed to be rolling up in his head and his mouth was curved in a satisfied smile.

When she stopped, he actually whimpered. She pushed him over onto his back and immediately straddled his hips, then stared down at his handsome face.

“So tell me, whose heart is racing now?”

“Mine.” Penn held his hands up in surrender. “You win.”

“And what’s my prize?”

With a quick move and a wicked laugh, he flipped them both over, pinning her beneath him. “Me.”

Penn sat on the edge of the trashed bed and stared at the bathroom door. He could hear Jora moving around in there, turning on the shower, brushing her teeth. All the routine things people did to begin their day, even if the start of their day was actually closer to noon.

This morning had been anything but routine for him. The tangle of sheets—half on the bed, half kicked to the floor—showed how they’d started off their morning, and had spent a good part of the night.

Hot damn, that woman really had rocked his world. But the shadow of fear that had hit him last night was creeping back in. If it was just scorching hot sex, he could walk away without a backward glance. But it had been way more than that: there had been a real connection. How could learning Jora’s body, what made her burn, and what made her burn even hotter, feel so damned right? As if his entire past had been like playing in the minor leagues and he’d just been called up to the majors?

If his sister were there he could’ve talked about it with her, but this wasn’t something he wanted to discuss over the phone. Lacey had risked everything to claim a Kalith warrior as her lover, so she’d understand the mishmash of emotions ripping through him.

Penn caught himself rubbing the rope of scar that wound its way around his right wrist. Holding his hand up in front of his face, he flexed it several times. Here, the wound that had crippled him didn’t matter quite so much.

Was that what was going on? For the first time since that nightmare battle, he felt whole? Jora was the first woman he’d met who didn’t look at him and see only what he used to be. She needed him in a way no one had needed him in a long time, trusting him to protect her and keep her safe.

Was this powerful attraction based on anything more than that? How the hell was he supposed to know? He hadn’t been lying to Jora when he’d warned her that she wasn’t like the women he usually dated. She was alone in this world. The last thing he should do is let her form a connection to him on any level, since he’d be returning to his half-life in Seattle afterward.

What kind of bastard would do that to a woman like her? The answer was obvious: he was that kind of bastard. He fisted his hand and dropped it to his side as the bathroom door opened.

Jora stepped out in a cloud of steam. “Your turn.”

“Thanks.” He gathered up his stuff and walked past her, hoping his smile looked more genuine than it felt.

He cranked up the water to scalding and stepped into the shower. A bar of scented soap sat on the ledge, and he reached out to lift it up to his nose. Penn breathed deeply, drawing the herbal scent into his lungs. It smelled like Jora.

He could have used the small bar of soap the motel provided, but he didn’t. After last night, there wasn’t a square inch of his skin that didn’t carry Jora’s scent. With their enhanced sense of smell, both Larem and Barak would immediately pick up on that. This way he could blame it on the soap.

Tonight he’d bunk with Barak and Larem, sleeping on their floor if necessary. The two rooms were adjoining, so Jora should be safe enough.

Now he just needed to find a way to explain it to her without it sounding like a rejection. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her, but how could he avoid it? Maybe he’d just offer to move out and let her decide.

He finished his shower and was just pulling on his boxers when Jora knocked. “Penn, someone’s at the door!”

“Stay back, I’ll be right there.”

He yanked on his jeans and charged out of the bathroom. After grabbing his gun, he checked the peephole and immediately started cursing. How did those two get there so early?

Before opening the door, he glanced at Jora. “It’s my two friends.”

She looked even more frightened, which worried him, but now wasn’t the time to ask her what was wrong. He unlocked the dead bolt and opened the door.

Barak looked apologetic. “I’m guessing from your expression that Devlin didn’t remember to tell you we took the bus rather than fly.”

Larem shifted side to side. “I’m afraid that this is my fault. Though Barak has handled flying without mishap, I’m not ready to share that particular experience.”

Neither man made a move to enter the room, but both craned their heads trying to see around him. They weren’t the sort to miss much, so he stepped out into the hallway with them, pulling the door closed behind him.

“Look, I just got out of the shower. Why don’t the two of you head over to the restaurant and get a table? I’ll be along in a minute.” He looked at the bags they’d dropped on the floor. “You can leave those. I have the room next door reserved for you. We can pick up the keys after we eat.”

After exchanging a quick look with his partner, Barak nodded. “Shall we ask for a table for three or four?”

“Four. See you in a few.”

Then he walked back inside the room, firmly closing the door in his friends’ faces.

Chapter 9

Jora made a halfhearted attempt to straighten the room while she waited for Penn to come back out of the bathroom and tell her what was going on. Obviously the early arrival of the two Kalith warriors had thrown him off balance. Why? What difference could a few hours mean? She would have thought that he’d be glad for their presence; it meant they could return to the barrier sooner.

Finally he came out, still looking grim. She sat on the edge of the bed and waited for him to tell her the plan. When he didn’t speak, she asked, “Do you want me to stay here while you confer with your friends?”

He actually considered the suggestion, and it surprised her how much that hurt. “Well, then, I see. I’ll eat some of the cereal we bought. Do you think you’ll be long?”

She immediately went back to picking up her meager possessions and sticking them in a drawer. When she straightened up, Penn had noiselessly moved up behind her, startling her into a gasp.

“Don’t do that,” she snapped, and punched him in the arm, venting a little of her hurt anger. To hide the very real possibility of tears, she turned her back to him.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to spook you.” He stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her, once again comforting her with the warm strength of his body. “And I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I was trying to decide if a public place was the best venue for you to meet two males from your world for the first time. I can vouch for both of them, if that helps.”

She was willing to bet that wasn’t the only reason behind his hesitation. “I have to meet them sometime.”

“If you’re sure that’s what you want.”

Why did his voice sound so reasonable, when the tension in his body was telegraphing a completely different message? Did he not want her to meet them? That made no sense since they had to work together. Was he worried about how they’d react to being confronted with a woman of their homeworld? Or was he worried they’d guess how the two of them had spent the night?

God, she had no experience in this morning-after etiquette.

Well, they’d never get anywhere if both of them kept pussyfooting around. “Penn, tell me what you want me to do. If you want me to wait here, say so. If you want me to go, I will. If you want me to pretend last night never happened—”

Before she could finish, Penn spun her around and his mouth crushed down onto hers. Then he pulled back to rest his chin on top of her head. “Shit.”

She made herself ask, “Regrets?”

“Some, but not for this. I’ve got to get my head back in the game, though, and that’s hard to do when every time I get near you, all I can think about is touching you.”

He stepped away. “We’d better go before they come looking for us.”

Jora watched him gather up his wallet and keys. Why did this feel like a good-bye? She wished they could remain barricaded in this room, isolated from the rest of the world and immune to its dangers.

But that wasn’t going to happen. Penn and his friends were the only ones who could help her stop the disaster she sensed lurking on the horizon. One misstep on their part and the rest of the world would suffer. People would die on both sides of the barrier.

“Ready?”

She mustered up the best smile she could. “Let’s go meet your friends.”

They walked to the elevator, and when the doors slid open at the lobby, he stepped in front of her, checking for danger.

“All clear.”

She followed him out. “Do you think they’ve been able to track us this far?”

“Not really, but better to play it safe.”

They crossed the parking lot in silence. By the time they reached the restaurant, her heart was doing a stutter step. Meeting males of her own race was a big deal. She’d been raised to fit in among the human population, which had involved hiding the special abilities that were her true heritage. With these men, that wouldn’t be possible.

As soon as she and Penn stepped inside the door, she felt them. Without being told, she turned to the right, immediately spotting two men who watched her with pale gray eyes that mirrored her own. Even their hair was the same shade as hers, caught between black and iron gray and shot through with silver. The only difference was that theirs was more evenly peppered with the lighter color, where hers was concentrated around her face.

As she approached the table, both men immediately rose to their feet and bowed their heads in greeting. Their gesture brought back images of her parents and their foreign mannerisms.

Penn positioned himself slightly behind her and off to one side. “Guys, this is Jora b’Larth.”

The older of the two spoke first. “I am Barak q’Young, and my companion is Larem q’Jones. It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss b’Larth.”

“It’s nice to meet you both.”

Barak motioned to the other side of the booth. “Shall we be seated? We’ve already requested that the waitress bring tea for the three of us. She’s bringing a pot of coffee for Penn as well.”

Jora reluctantly slid onto the bench, feeling overwhelmed by three such big men. “I go by Jora Larth. We dropped the ‘b’ when we moved here because it was easier than explaining the b-apostrophe.”

Larem spoke for the first time. “We each adopted the last name of one of our human friends. Lonzo Jones, one of Penn’s fellow Paladins, also allowed me to move in with him when unexpected circumstances brought me to this world.”

There was an undercurrent in his statement that made her wonder exactly what those circumstances had been. But she had her own secrets that she wasn’t anxious to share.

The waitress arrived with the tea and coffee. After they’d placed their orders for breakfast, the four of them lapsed into silence.

Finally, Penn spoke up. “After we eat, we’ll head back to the motel. Once you’re checked in, I’ll give Jora’s reports to you to read over, and then we’ll make some plans. Since her cabin is over three hours away, I’m thinking we’d be better off staying here tonight. If we grab an early breakfast, we can get where we need to be by midmorning.”

His voice dropped. “I’ll need to pick up the rest of my things from the motel where I spent the first night. I’m thinking that town is too small for us to hide in.”

Then he shot her a quick glance. “Jora had to leave her cabin unexpectedly, so we’ll need to stop by there, too. It won’t be safe for her to go back alone.”

The sick feeling in her stomach worsened. “You’re thinking I won’t ever be able to go live there again, aren’t you?”

Once again Penn’s blunt honesty didn’t fail her. “It will all depend on how this plays out. Either way, I’d feel better if you pack up the important stuff and get it out of there until we know for sure.”

Jora wrapped her hands around her mug of tea, soaking up its warmth. “I really, really hate this whole mess.”

Larem said, “If you do have to leave your home permanently, at least you’ll be able to take your belongings with you and the memories they hold.” His smile was laced with such sadness.

What had he left behind that still held the power to haunt him? Again, a question she wouldn’t ask. Instead she listened as the three men chatted among themselves, taking note of any names they mentioned. Devlin Bane had sent more cash in case Penn was running short. Lacey, Barak’s wife, had not only packed food for Barak and Larem to eat on their long bus ride, but also included a box of homemade cookies for Penn.

“Of course, there will be a delivery charge involved.” Barak’s dark-lashed eyes gleamed as he set the package on the table out of Penn’s reach. “I’m thinking at least half a dozen of the chocolate chip and the snickerdoodles.”

“That’s each, by the way,” Larem added.

“No way. I’m betting Lacey gave you your own batch of cookies. It’s not my fault if you pigged out on them on the way here.” Then in a lightning-fast move, Penn snatched the box from Barak.

He shot Jora a triumphant look as his friends laughed. “Never, ever get between a Paladin and a box of cookies.” He popped open the box and counted his booty. Then he counted again.

“Okay, Lacey always—always—packs cookies in even dozens. I’m missing one.” He eyed his two friends with great suspicion. “Explanations, gentlemen?”

Jora watched the two Kalith warriors successfully maintain stoic expressions, but unless she was mistaken, Larem was laughing on the inside. Her father had often had that same twinkle in his eyes when he found something amusing but wanted to hide it.

She decided to call the handsome Kalith on it. “Penn’s not short just one cookie, is he, gentlemen? I’m thinking the real number is closer to thirteen.”

All three men stared at her, two looking surprised and the third looking outraged. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

The two Kalith looked at each other, then Barak dropped a plastic bag of cookies onto the table. Penn shoved it into the box before setting it on the seat next to her. “Jerks. I would’ve shared, but not now.”

Barak punched his companion on the arm. “I told you to leave an even number.”

“Yes, but where’s the fun in that?”

The waitress appeared with a tray full of plates, and the four of them concentrated on eating their meals. When Penn was finished, he stretched his arm out along the back of the bench behind her. Larem didn’t seem to notice, but Barak definitely did. Jora shifted a little farther away, unsure if Penn was merely getting comfortable or quietly staking a claim.

Jora was relieved when they finally paid the bill and walked outside. She normally spent most of her time alone, and right now she needed a break.

“Penn, I’ve been shut in for the past twenty-four hours. If you don’t need me, I’m going to take a walk. I won’t be gone long.”

Before she’d gone five feet, her path was blocked by three male bodies. “What?” she asked.

Penn crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m thinking that’s not a good idea. I want you to come back inside with us.”

“I disagree. I’ve already said I won’t be gone long, thirty minutes tops. I have my cell phone. I’ll call you if I’m going to be gone longer.”

“Have you forgotten those men who are hunting you?”

“No, but there’s no indication that they’ve followed us this far.” She tried to step around him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, you and your friends have stuff to talk about. Secret Paladin stuff, I’m sure.” She threw some gas on the fire. “So why don’t you run along and do that?”

The two Kalith immediately backed away. “We’ll go check in and meet you upstairs, Penn.”

“You do that. It appears I’m going for a walk.”

Jora was perfectly capable of taking care of herself, but the truth was, she wouldn’t mind his company. “Fine.”

He let her choose the direction, adjusting his stride to match hers. After a few seconds he took her hand, entwining his fingers with hers.

“Good save on the cookies.” He held out the box. “Want one?”

As a peace offering, it was a good start. “Two.”

“Fine, but don’t tell them. They’ll be expecting equal treatment.”

As she munched on a chocolate chip cookie, she decided to ask some tough questions. “You told me how Barak ended up in this world. I’m guessing Larem’s story is quite different.”

Penn’s steps slowed. “It is. I’m not sure it’s mine to tell, but you can ask him. All I’ll say is that it wasn’t his choice, but he’s made a new life in Seattle.”

Jora stared at their joined hands. “This is all a bit overwhelming. My parents lived their whole lives terrified that the Paladins would discover our existence.”

“What did they think would happen?” Penn asked, but she suspected he already knew the answer to that question.

She kept her eyes focused straight ahead. “At best, the Paladins would shove us back across the barrier. At worst, my parents knew very well what happened to most of our kind who cross the barrier.”

A flash of anger crossed Penn’s face. “The crazies who cross the barrier are nothing like you, or like Barak or Larem. I’m guessing you’ve never seen a Kalith out-of-his-head crazy, and I hope to hell you never do.”

Jora sighed. “It’s a sickness, you know. They can’t help it. My father lost both of his parents to it when he was just a child.” He never got over it, either.

“We know that, but it doesn’t change a thing. If we don’t stop them at the barrier, they keep right on killing.”

This was an argument neither of them would win. The real question was if it was a gap neither of them could ever breach. They walked on until her restlessness eased.

“We should get back. Barak and Larem will be waiting for me to fill them in,” she said.

As they turned back, Penn cleared his throat. “While we’re on the topic of rooms, where would you prefer I sleep tonight? If you’d rather, I can crash on the floor in their room.”

Her first instinct was to be hurt by his willingness to leave her on her own, but she immediately realized he was trying not to make any assumptions. “If I let you sleep with me, will you share your cookies?”

“Only the chocolate chips. The snickerdoodles are all mine.”

She smiled. “It’s a deal. Now, let’s go check on your buddies.”

Chapter 10

They had a lot of ground to cover, plans to devise, and decisions to make. But as Penn sipped his coffee, all he could think about was when he and Jora could go back to the room and turn the lock. He watched as she spread out a topographical map of the park, showing Barak and Larem where the problem was and how she’d discovered it.

He wasn’t surprised that the two males were impressed by what she had to say; Jora knew her park inside and out. They listened intently as she explained the normal geology of the area, and looked horrified at the potential disaster if they didn’t find the bastards quickly.

Barak pointed at the map. “You are telling me that this caldera, as you call it, is forty-five miles in length?”

Jora nodded. “Some call it a super volcano. If it ever blew, it would make the damage caused by Mount St. Helens back in 1980 look like a minor inconvenience. Over the past few years there has been a definite uplift in the elevation, which could mean it’s growing more unstable.”

Larem spoke up. “As your best guess, what do you think these fools are trying to do?”

She shrugged. “Penn and I saw signs that they’ve been dragging something heavy across the barrier. The only logical explanation is that they’re attempting to siphon off energy from this world into theirs. For certain, someone is deliberately damaging the barrier.”

Penn set down his coffee and paced the room. “In all my years, I’ve never seen any stretch of the barrier look as bad as this one did and have it stay up. Even the frequency was off, making me feel sick to be near it. Jora described it as going feral.”

The normally calm Barak slammed his fist down on the table. “What kind of idiot would deliberately do such a stupid thing? If Jora’s right, the barrier would have not only failed, it would have ripped the two worlds apart. There’s no telling how much of either world would survive.”

That’s what Penn had feared: that this whole mess was more than a few blue gemstones being ripped off from Kalithia. “I’d call Devlin and tell him to send more of the guys over, but I don’t think it would help. Besides, if all hell does break loose, he’ll need to keep his men right where they are. There are stretches of barrier scattered along the entire Ring of Fire around the Pacific. The Paladins are spread thin enough as it is.”

The three men pondered the possibilities. Finally, Penn had an idea. “Larem, does Hunter still get messages across the barrier to Berk?”

Jora looked from Penn to Larem and back. “Who are Hunter and Berk?”

Penn answered. “Hunter’s a Paladin who protects a small stretch of the barrier north of Seattle. He keeps in touch with Berk, who is one of the Kalith warriors we’ve been working with on a common problem.”

Larem stared at the map. “I’ll call Hunter when we’re done talking. I’m not sure what Berk can do, but they should be warned, sooner rather than later.”

“Sounds good.” Penn gathered up the papers. “Is there anything else?”

“I have a couple of questions for Jora.” Larem turned back to her. “I’m sorry, but I’m not familiar with your clan.”

“Why not?” Penn asked.

Larem explained, “The letter before our last names designates what part of Kalithia a clan hails from. Jora’s family would have originated some distance from where my family lives.”

Penn winced at the obvious pain in Larem’s voice. The warrior never complained, making it easy to forget that he’d been ripped out of his world through no choice of his own. If he tried to return home, he’d face possible execution at the hands of those he’d sworn to protect.

Larem’s face was once again expressionless as he asked Jora, “What are the gifts granted your bloodlines?”

Jora frowned as she thought about it. “Given enough time, I can heal the barrier. If that was the only problem I would’ve handled the situation by myself, but the repeated attacks on it have destabilized the surrounding rock. Again, I can often reverse the damage, but I can’t do both without draining myself dry.”

Barak joined in. “Why has no one noticed there’s a problem? You can’t be the only geologist working in the area.”

“No, I’m not. However, low-level earthquakes are common in the park, and often come in swarms. Only someone with our sensitivity to the barrier and the stresses on the rock would have realized these weren’t natural in origin.”

Larem nodded as if she’d confirmed his suspicions. “Barak’s talents are similar to yours, but mine are just starting to manifest themselves and lie in a different direction altogether. It may be that I’ll be able to assist you with my energy, but it’s doubtful I can do more than that. I will, however, stand guard while you and Barak work in tandem.”

Penn listened as the three Kalith continued talking about their various spooky abilities. Despite the dire situation, it was clear that Jora was enthralled with sharing trade secrets with the two males.

He glanced at his watch and was surprised to see five hours had passed. It was time to take charge. “Let’s grab an early dinner and then turn in. We’ll want to leave before first light, which should get us back to her place before midmorning. Any questions?”

Jora was already folding the map and stowing it in her pack. “I’m not particularly hungry. Why don’t you three go without me?”

Rather than being disappointed, Penn was startled to realize he was relieved. He didn’t particularly like having to share Jora with the two Kalith males.

He had no business thinking that way, but too damn bad. Given his uncertain future, what he and Jora were sharing might not survive beyond the next few days. Hell, he didn’t know if the world would survive that long, but as long as he was breathing, he wanted her all to himself.

Until she told him otherwise, she was his. Which made him hers as well, he supposed. Odd thought, that. He’d never belonged to anyone who wasn’t a blood relative. But as he poked at the concept, he decided he was all right with it.

“I’ll bring you back something, if you’d like.”

At Larem’s words, Penn’s hands knotted into fists. He got right up in the other’s face. “Back off, Larem. I’ll be taking care of any needs Jora might have.”

Jora’s face turned red, then white as her own temper took over. “Penn Sebastian! How could you? I’m not some bone for the two of you to squabble over.”

God, he hated having to crawl in front of his brother-in-law—not to mention his smirking companion. It was bad enough that Barak would tell Lacey he was making a total fool of himself over a woman, and a Kalith woman at that. She’d never let him live it down, considering how much grief he’d given her over falling in love with his enemy.

But Larem would tell Lonzo, which meant it would spread like wildfire among the Seattle Paladins. He might as well rent a billboard and post the news for everyone to read.

“Sorry, Jora. I didn’t mean it the way it sounded.”

Then he glared at Barak and Larem. “Wait out in the hall. I’ll be right with you.”

Larem planted himself in a chair, stretching his legs out to show he wasn’t going anywhere. “I’d rather watch you grovel.”

Luckily, Barak interceded. “Larem, you might want to remember that Paladins have long memories and revenge is their favorite pastime. Let’s go.”

“You’re no fun,” Larem groused.

When the door closed behind them, Penn gingerly approached Jora. “I really am sorry. And I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

She held out her hand to stop him. “Fine—but don’t do it again. I’m already a little uncomfortable with them knowing about our relationship. Shoving it in Larem’s face wasn’t necessary.”

Relationship. He liked the sound of that, even if he didn’t know quite how to handle it. He wanted to kiss her or at least get a hug, but her body language was a mixed bag of messages. Rather than force the issue, he backed away.

“Are you sure you’ll be all right alone?”

“I’m a big girl, Penn. All I’m going to do is run a hot bath and relax.”

The images that conjured up made leaving even more difficult. She knew it, too, the brat.

He gave her a hopeful smile. “You know, I could get my dinner to go. That tub is really big.”

“Go, Penn. I want at least an hour to myself. I need some downtime.”

He knew when to retreat. “Okay, but one hour’s the max. Anything more would be cruel.”

Penn stepped out of their room and looked for his friends. Barak and Larem were far enough down the hallway to prevent them from overhearing Penn’s conversation with Jora. Good thing—this wasn’t Paladin headquarters, where fistfights broke out on a regular basis. If Larem pushed him too far, they could both end up cooling off in the local jail.

“So where shall we eat?” he asked the others.

“Italian always works for me,” Barak said as they walked out of the hotel. “Or a pancake house, if there’s one close by.”

Penn headed over to his truck. “We’ll cruise around and see what we can find.”

Twenty minutes later the three of them were seated in a small restaurant, the air rich with the aroma of marinara sauce and hot, yeasty bread. Penn glanced at his watch, marking off the time before he could safely return to the motel.

“Do you have an appointment we don’t know about?” Barak broke a breadstick in half and took a healthy bite.

There was no good answer to that question, so Penn asked one of his own. “So what do you think of this whole situation?”

Larem leaned back in his chair, his arms crossed over his chest. “I think Jora is beautiful and smart. She’s also from our world—not yours.”

“That’s not what I was asking.”

“Yes, it was, and I answered. She has no male relative here to stand for her best interests. If she were my sister, we’d be having a long discussion about how unsuitable you would be for her future happiness.”

Penn closed his eyes and prayed for patience. “Whether or not I’m good for Jora is none of your damned business. We’re not having this discussion just because she makes you feel all brotherly, Larem. She’s not your sister.”

Barak interceded. “That may be true, Penn, but it doesn’t change anything. She’s obviously a nice woman who is in over her head with what’s going on around here. And I’m not just talking about the barrier and the earthquakes.”

“Stuff it, both of you,” he snapped. “Larem, are you telling me Sasha’s father was thrilled when he found out about you and her?”

Then Penn pointed a finger at Barak. “As for you, it’s not like you listened to anything I had to say when you decided to get involved with my sister.”

At the time, Penn wanted to kill him for daring to touch Lacey. It had taken kidnappers and a mountain threatening to kill all three of them for him to accept that Barak loved Lacey more than life itself. Penn had had as much chance of stopping a volcano from erupting as he did preventing his sister and Barak from building a life together.

Evidently love was blind to things like boundary lines and a brother’s prejudices. He thought about Jora as he stared at the scar that had become the focus of his existence. His life had gone radically off track when that Other’s sword had slashed through flesh and bone, and he was still waiting to see where his new destiny would take him.

He’d never expected to end up here with a woman like Jora b’Larth waiting for him back in their room. For the first time in too damn long, he had something to look forward to.

What were Jora’s hopes and dreams for her future? Did she see herself living out her life exploring the wilderness by herself? Was there room for the right man at her side, one who knew her truth and would love her with every breath he drew? He tried to imagine what the guy would be like, but all he could see was himself. Fat chance of that happening.

“This looks delicious.”

Barak’s comment dragged Penn back to the present. He hadn’t even noticed that the waitress had delivered their dinners. If he drifted like this out in the field, people could die. Jora could die—but that wasn’t going to happen. Not on his watch. Not ever.

He picked up his fork and began eating, not really noticing how it tasted. The sooner they finished, the sooner he could get back to Jora, where he belonged.

Jora added more hot water to the tub, though her fingertips were already looking like prunes. She hadn’t really expected Penn to stay gone the full hour. At the time, the presence of the three big men in one room had her feeling crowded, but now she only felt abandoned. She’d ordered Penn to give her some space, yet now she was mad because he had. Was that crazy or what?

Ever since she’d made that phone call to Devlin Bane, everything had been off-kilter. She couldn’t go back to the way things had been, so she had to follow this path wherever it might take her. Penn and his friends were the only hope of securing the barrier, but she had serious doubts about the chance for success. Was she crazy for depending on three men she barely knew?

Well, two she barely knew—and one she knew far better than she should. Her body knew every impressive inch of his, but her connection to Penn Sebastian ran far deeper than that.

Jora had always doubted her mother’s claim to have taken one look at her future husband and known he was the one for her. Evidently her father had taken a bit more convincing, but not much. Their story had been sweet and romantic, but Jora hadn’t bought into it. Maybe she owed her parents’ memory an apology. She wasn’t ready to label what she was feeling love, but it was strong.

The sound of a door in the other room opening had her sitting upright in the tub and holding her breath. Footsteps stopped right outside the bathroom door.

“Jora? Can I come in?”

She was already climbing out of the tub and reaching for a towel. “It’s not locked.”

Penn opened the door, and his smile heated up considerably when he saw her tucking in the end of the towel to hold it in place. It started at the top slope of her breasts and left a bit of her bottom peeking out. He stood behind her, their gazes locking in the mirror. Penn leaned down to lick a drop of water from her shoulder, sending shivers straight to the core of her.

“Did you enjoy your bath?”

His heat nearly scorched her. “Yes, I did. Was your dinner good?”

“It was fine, but what I’m looking forward to is dessert.”

He pulled the clip from her hair and tossed it onto the counter, then gently worked her braid loose, sending her hair cascading around her shoulders. Jora leaned back against Penn’s chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist. “This is going to get out of hand pretty fast if you don’t stop me.”

“Why would I do that?”

She reached for his hands and placed them on her breasts, drawing a sharp breath when he squeezed them gently. When her towel came undone, she turned and buried her face against his chest.

He crooked his finger and lifted her chin, smiling. “Want to take this into the other room?”

“Yes.”

Penn had already turned off the lights except for the one near the door. It cast the room in a soft, intimate glow.

They slipped under the bedcovers, facing each other, only a breath apart. “I don’t want to rush this, Jora. There’s no telling what will happen tomorrow. Tonight might be—”

She stopped him, not wanting to hear the words. “Leave tomorrow and its problems outside, Penn.”

He swallowed hard and nodded. “I want to love you tonight—all night.”

“Good. That’s what I want, what I need.” She moved closer, lifting her leg over his. “Take me, Penn. Rock my world.”

And he did.

Chapter 11

The truck lurched hard into a deep rut and jolted to a stop. Penn cursed as he tried to coax the rig into moving forward again, hopefully without leaving his suspension behind. He was running on no sleep and high tension, never a good combination.

He glanced in Jora’s direction to see how she was holding up. Not much better than he was, and he suspected that was due more to the proximity of the cavern and the barrier.

Barak was definitely green around the gills, too. Not surprising, since he shared Jora’s sensitivity to both the barrier and to the surrounding layers of rock. If they were both feeling it this far out, it was a sure bet that someone had been screwing around with the stability of the barrier again.

He shifted gears, letting up on the clutch as he pressed down on the gas. The truck groaned and strained, finally climbing free of the rut. Almost immediately, Penn had to give a hard yank to the left to avoid another rough patch in the road.

He glanced at Jora again. “Why is this road so much worse than it was just a couple of days ago?”

“It’s deliberate,” she said through gritted teeth. “I don’t know how they did it, but the weather has been too nice to cause this kind of damage.”

Great. The bastards were not only trying to destroy the barrier, but also had enough mojo left over to screw with the roads around the park. Luckily they were only a short distance from the end, where they’d have to walk.

They hadn’t seen any signs of the enemy, and he wasn’t sure what to think of that. Were the bastards restricted to working at night for some reason? Well, one way or the other, he and his team were going to have to put a stop to this mess.

He backed the truck off the road, carefully maneuvering it into a stand of trees. With the truck facing the road, they could get away faster if necessary.

As soon as the four of them climbed out, they stretched before shouldering their packs and checking over their weapons. Barak and Larem each carried a sword similar to Jora’s. Though Penn had his as well, he had also loaded up extra ammunition for the two revolvers strapped at his waist.

Jora held her sword with both hands, moving through a set of exercises. All three men stopped what they were doing to watch. Hot damn, she sure knew how to move!

When she realized they were all staring, she stuttered to a stop. Penn glared at the other two men, who quickly got busy with their own preparations.

Jora frowned at them and then at Penn. “Once we reach the cavern, what’s the plan?”

“That will be up to you and Barak. Larem will support you if he can. I’m the hired muscle.” As long as he could use a gun.

“I’ll take point while you two handle rear guard. Jora, you stay between us, and if I say duck, you dive for cover and stay there.”

“I can fight,” she protested.

“Yeah, but you’re also the only one who with experience fixing this particular barrier. If you go down, we’re all screwed.”

As soon as Penn started down the trail, a tidal wave of dread washed over him. For a few seconds, it took all his strength to move forward. Then the sensation faded just as suddenly.

“Did anyone else feel that?” he asked.

Jora’s eyes were wild looking, her pupils dilated and scared. “It’s the barrier. Someone ripped it open, but it’s closing.”

“He’ll try again as soon as he’s able.” Barak looked even worse, clearly feeling the effects more than anyone else.

Penn started forward at a run. “We need to get there before that happens, but keep your eyes peeled. I doubt he’s alone.”

They ran on in near silence. None of them had the breath to spare for talking, and anything other than a whisper could alert the enemy. Penn soon spotted the boulders that marked the opening of the cavern and he held up his hand, motioning the others to fall back slightly while he scouted the area.

If anyone was watching the mouth of the cave, he was doing it from far enough away to avoid being spotted. Penn closed his eyes and reached out with his other senses. Nothing. Though their way to the entrance appeared to be clear, his instincts screamed danger with each step he took.

But safe or not, they had no choice but to move forward. Waving for the other three to join him, he admired the way Jora moved with the same lethal grace as her fellow Kalith.

“Everyone ready?”

Jora nodded, her expression solemn. Barak did the same, but Larem grinned. Ordinarily Penn would have been feeling the same rush of battle fever, but he was too worried about Jora to take satisfaction in once again doing what he’d trained for his whole life.

He stepped inside the cave, his eyes immediately adjusting to the sudden darkness. He tuned out the soft footsteps behind him, concentrating on the passage ahead. Despite the silence, they weren’t alone.

His stomach churned and acid burned the back of his throat. The barrier was sick. He could feel it in his blood and his bones. After a lifetime of fighting near the damn thing, he’d thought he knew its every mood: healthy, strong, weakened, down, and everything in between. But this was different—somehow this stretch of the shimmering energy was being tortured. There was no other word for it.

He looked back at Jora and the two Kalith males, briefly flicking on his flashlight. All three looked horrified, but resolute. He extinguished the light and moved on.

By the time the passage widened out again, it was all Penn could do not to go charging forward, screaming out his rage. With his sword in one hand and his gun in the other, he silently stepped forward. The cavern was empty.

Jora followed him into the cave, Larem and Barak fanning out on either side of them. All four stood transfixed as they stared at what was left of the barrier. Along the edges, it still looked normal—sick, but normal. But there were no words to describe where the center of the barrier used to be. They weren’t looking into the Kalith’s world, which would have been bad enough.

It was as if they were staring into the heart of creation, that single second where the universe went from nothing to everything in a burst of bright light.

“What the hell is that?” he asked, hoping one of the others had an answer.

Barak was shaking his head, but it was unclear whether he had no answer or was denying what his eyes were telling him was true. Larem’s face was frozen in a grimace of pain, and his sword hit the ground with a loud clank as he slowly sank to the floor of the cave.

Penn’s own gaze was drawn back to the hole torn in his reality. The ever-changing patterns pulsed and danced, making him want to reach out and touch them. Their cold beauty was that of a cobra, mesmerizing but deadly. He backed up a step and reached down to help Larem back to his feet. They had to get the hell out while they still could.

Then Jora laid her sword at her feet and brought her hands up in the same position as the last time she’d tried to bring the rogue energy back under control.

“Jora, no!” he yelled.

But tendrils of energy had already stretched out to entangle her in their grasp. Slowly, they reeled her in, pulling her step by step toward the infinity of the breach. He dropped Larem’s arm and lunged forward to catch her, to fight for her, to keep her grounded in this world.

She shot him a terrified look. “Don’t touch me, Penn. Please. I have to do this.”

She moved forward as Barak and Larem latched onto Penn, dragging him down to the floor.

“Jora!” She touched the rift, and the cave exploded in a cacophony of sound and light. The last thing he remembered was Jora looking back at him as the darkness claimed her. He could have sworn he heard the words “I love you,” but he was too busy screaming to be sure.

“For the sake of the gods, man, snap out of it!”

The words were punctuated by a loud slap, followed by a faint sting of pain. On some level, the rough treatment pissed Penn off, but everything was happening at a distance, muted as if the pain belonged to someone else. A splash of water hit his face next, leaving him sputtering for breath.

Penn finally shrugged off his lethargy and came up fighting. His fist connected to someone’s jaw with a satisfying crunch before a pair of arms snapped around him like bands of steel. His protest came out as a mere whimper, his throat feeling as raw as if he’d swallowed broken glass.

What the hell had happened to him? To the others? Then it all came rushing back. Oh, God, Jora!

His eyes popped open and struggled to focus. Barak hovered over him, rubbing his jaw. That meant it was Larem who held him trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey.

“Jora?” he managed to rasp. “Where?”

Larem loosened his hold and moved back. “We don’t know. That last surge knocked all three of us out.”

Penn struggled up to his feet, staggering a couple of steps to lean against the cave wall. Several seconds passed before his head quit swimming enough that he could take note of his surroundings. The barrier was back in place. A few streaks of sickness were scattered across the narrow expanse, but otherwise it was intact.

He pulled his gaze away to glance at Barak. “How stable is this place?”

“Better than it was, but not great.”

“Do you think she’s trapped on the other side?” If so, she could be at the mercy of crazies armed with swords and driven by a thirst for blood. As terrifying as that possibility was, it was less scary than think she could be . . . simply gone.

He retrieved his sword and his gun. “We need to check. She could be hurt—or worse.”

Barak rolled his shoulders and breathed deeply. “Give me a minute for my head to clear a bit more, and I’ll see what I can do to bring the barrier down.”

Penn paced the length of the cavern and back again. The last place he ever wanted to be was on the other side of the barrier, but for Jora, he’d march right across and take on every freaking Other in existence.

“All right, I’m ready.”

Barak assumed a position similar to the one that Jora had used. Larem came up beside him on the right. Barak chanted softly under his breath, his eyes closed in concentration.

Almost immediately, the barrier began slowly pulsing. Penn focused on the floor of the cave to keep the dizzying array of colors from making him queasy. Finally he resumed pacing, knowing that rushing Barak could prove fatal to all of them.

While the two Kalith focused on the barrier, he explored the passage that had led them to the cavern, hoping to find some sign of Jora. Anything was better than the idea that she’d somehow crossed into another reality, one that didn’t include him.

“Penn.”

He turned back to see what Larem wanted, but one look at the barrier answered his unspoken question. The energy was stretched so thin now that it was like looking through translucent glass. He could pick out enough detail to know he was seeing Kalithia.

A handful of figures moved into sight as the barrier continued to thin out. Penn gripped his sword tightly but kept his gun drawn, even though bullets could rip the barrier to shreds, making it harder to restore. There was also the problem of the stone walls increasing the danger of ricochets. The last thing they needed was a barrage of bullets bouncing around the cave.

As the final glimmer of energy dissipated, darkness blanketed the cavern. Torches flickered to life from the other side, chasing the shadows back into the corners. Penn braced himself to face the charge of crazed Others for the first time since his injury. Instead, the Kalith warriors stood their ground, weapons at the ready, but without making any hostile moves.

Barak stepped toward the barrier, the figures engraved on the blade of his sword shimmering in the darkness. His voice echoed off the rough-hewn walls of the cave as he spoke. “I am Barak q’Young, and this is Larem, my Blademate.” Then he pointed toward Penn. “He is our friend and leader, Paladin Penn Sebastian.”

Penn injected as much formality and strength as he could into his words. “Identify yourselves and your business at the barrier.”

One of the warriors stepped forward. “We hunt those who would endanger us all. We have no cause to cross swords with you, Paladin.” His voice was deep and guttural, making it difficult to understand him. Then he jerked his head in Barak’s direction, “Or them, though traitors they both be.”

Larem snarled and started forward. “I am no traitor, Guardian. If you would live through this day, I suggest you guard your tongue better than you have guarded your world.”

This was going to get out of hand if they weren’t careful.

“Enough, both of you. We have far greater problems to deal with right now. Did any of you see a young Kalith woman on your side of the barrier? She would have been dressed in human clothing.”

The men muttered among themselves, shaking their heads. Finally, their leader said, “We were patrolling this area some distance from the barrier when an energy wave knocked us to the ground. As soon we were able to move, we came straight here to investigate. There are many tracks on the approach to this part of the barrier, but we saw no one.”

Penn considered his options, not liking any of them. “Would you object to me taking a look myself? I might be able to pick out her footprints.”

The Guardian gave him a suspicious look. “Why would a Kalith woman be dressed as a human?”

“Her name is Jora b’Larth. Her parents bought their way into my world when she was an infant. Jora has lived here her whole life.”

Evidently that satisfied the man, because he nodded. “Come if you dare, Paladin. We won’t guarantee your safety if the barrier traps you on this side.”

“Barak?”

“I can hold it for a short time, as long as whatever knocked us flat doesn’t pay us another visit.”

“Do your best.”

“I will. I do not want to have to tell the boss that I left you stranded over there.” Barak’s smile was wicked.

Penn nodded. “Yeah, Devlin would take that badly.”

“Barak wasn’t talking about Devlin, idiot,” Larem said as he cuffed Penn on the shoulder. “He meant Lacey.”

Penn grinned at his two friends. “You’re right. My sister is a whole lot scarier than Devlin is even on one of his bad days.”

He appreciated the two Kalith warriors’ efforts to lighten the moment. All this time, he’d thought Cullen was crazy for charging across the barrier to rescue the woman he loved. Now Penn knew exactly how he’d felt.

As he stepped across, the Kalith Sworn Guardian and his Blademates immediately surrounded him, their swords drawn.

Chapter 12

The air was thick with heat, dust, and tension. Penn slowly met each man’s eyes, warrior to warrior. These men were not the crazies he’d spent his entire life fighting. Even so, their proximity had his scar aching. Reminding himself they were here to do a job, same as him, he got down to business.

“Show me what you’ve got.”

The leader used his torch to point to the floor of the cave. “The ground in here is too hard to show the passing of feet, but those deep gouges on your side continue into our side of the cave. Outside, they disappear, but the dust shows the passing of several individuals and their pack animals. Perhaps you will see something we have missed.”

The Guardian sounded skeptical, but at least he was willing to give Penn a chance. They walked several minutes in silence until they stepped out into the dimly lit world of Kalithia.

The twin suns were pale imitations of the one that lit up his world. As a result, the plant life was scrubby and short. A small stream babbled down the hillside, but it was the only cheery note in the dismal surroundings.

He moved forward slowly, studying the ground. Just as the Guardian and his men had indicated, there were plenty of footprints in the dust. As far as he could tell, they were all made by the smooth soles of Kalith boots.

Looking out across the terrain, he was puzzled. “Is this area patrolled regularly? There seem to be an awful lot of footprints, considering how remote this place is.”

The Guardian studied Penn for several seconds before answering. “We were thinking the same thing. I plan to report to our Guildmaster what we have noted and ask that he increase patrols until we learn what is going on here.”

How much should Penn share? “Do you know a Sworn Guardian named Berk?”

The Guardian was visibly shocked at his casual use of a Guardian’s name, but he nodded. “He serves a different area, but our paths have crossed. Why?”

“My name is Penn. If you contact him, he will vouch for me and my friends back there.”

“And why would he do that?”

“We have worked with him to stop greedy men on both sides of the barrier.” He gestured back toward the cave. “Do you know what a volcano is?”

The abrupt change in subjects had the man frowning. “Yes, it’s mountain that explodes with melted rock and ashes.”

Penn nodded. “The land on my side of the barrier is known for an immense volcano that lays hidden from sight. If it were to explode, my world would die. With the connection your world has to mine, it might rip through here as well.”

He pointed to the gouges on the ground. “We think someone is trying to find a way to steal the energy produced by the lake of melted rock and bring it into your world. That wave of energy that knocked you and your men down was caused by the damage they’ve already done to the barrier. When Jora tried to stabilize the rupture in the fabric of the energy, it went feral. The resulting shockwave knocked all of us out. When we woke up, she was gone.” He didn’t try to disguise the pain in his voice.

“This Kalith woman Jora b’Larth, she means something to you.” It wasn’t a question.

The truth was that he loved her, but she should be the first one to hear him say those words. “Yes, I would protect Jora with my sword and trade my life for hers.”

The Guardian immediately stepped away to confer with his men. Then one of his Blademates ran off in one direction, while the other two went in another.

The Guardian rejoined Penn. “We should return you to the barrier. I don’t have the gift your friends have for working with the energy, but I sense it struggling to return.

“I sent a message to Berk. He will want to know that the enemy is now active in this area. The rest of my Blademates went to fetch our gear. We will set up camp nearby until reinforcements can arrive.”

At the entrance to the cave, the warrior retrieved his torch to light the way before continuing his explanation of their plans. “Once we are settled in, we will search further for signs of your woman.”

Penn couldn’t have asked for more. “If you need to contact me, toss a note across the barrier when you can. We will be monitoring the cave until we catch the traitors working on our side.”

“We will do the same.”

Penn stuffed his revolver into his waistband, then held his hand out to the Guardian.

The Guardian stared at the scar on Penn’s wrist for a second before gripping his hand. “Did one of my people do that?”

There was no use in denying it. “Yes, one of those seeking the light got lucky, or else I got careless.” It felt odd to be joking about the injury with this man, but it also felt right to repeat the same thing he’d told Jora when they’d first met. “My people have a saying, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. For me, that is true.”

A slow smile spread across the Guardian’s stern features. “My name is Arik, and for today, Paladin, we will be friends. Tomorrow that may change, but I would hope not.”

“Me, too, Sworn Guardian Arik. Here’s to peace between our people.”

Penn stepped back across the barrier.

Where was she? Jora’s head pounded, making it impossible to focus on anything but the pain. Instead of forcing the issue, she kept her eyes closed and reached out with her other senses. Judging by the low hum in the back of her mind, she was still close to the barrier. The frequency was off, though. Was she no longer in the same cavern?

The last thing she remembered was reaching to heal that bizarre damage to the barrier. Had someone yelled? Maybe, but the shout had come from behind her somewhere. It was all too foggy to make sense.

Fighting against the panic threatening to overpower her, she concentrated on the other information she could pick up.

The air was damp and cool, but smelled like rock rather than the forest. That verified that she was inside a cave—but in which world? The steady drip of water meant she wouldn’t die of thirst, at least. That was good news, right?

She opened one eye and then the other. Yep, she was in a cave. Shadows flickered along the walls. Slowly turning her head, she spotted a small, unattended campfire a short distance away, camping gear scattered around. Wood smoke was being drawn upward to a narrow fissure in the ceiling, which meant she wasn’t far underground.

She rolled onto her side and then pushed herself into a sitting position. So far, so good. Whatever had happened at the barrier had left her feeling bruised and battered, but nothing seemed to be broken.

That was the good news. The sound of footsteps headed her way, not so much. She had nowhere to run, but they were too close for her to have gone far, anyway. Looking around for a weapon, she picked up a fist-size rock.

By the time a Kalith warrior came around the corner with a load of firewood, she was ready to see if her softball skills had rusted since college. She’d give him two seconds to convince her he wasn’t the enemy before she let fly.

As soon as he spotted her, he dropped the wood, then bellowed in challenge as he drew his sword and charged straight toward her.

The rock made a satisfying thunk as it bounced off his head, dropping him to his knees. She refused to feel guilty about the bloody gash in his forehead, since he’d intended far worse to her. She took off running. If she was anywhere in the park, she’d be able to find her way back to Penn and the others.

But there wasn’t even time for her pulse to slow down before her pursuer caught up with her. He grabbed for her, but she ducked and managed to evade him. Then he launched a tackle that slammed her to the ground.

The resulting scuffle was over quickly, but at least she got in a few good blows before he dragged her up on her feet and right back to where they’d started.

He shoved her to the far side of the cave, then grabbed a piece of cloth to wipe the blood off his face. She was disappointed to see that he shared the Paladins’ capacity for fast healing; the cut had already closed.

“Where am I?” she asked in English.

Her captor ignored her while he tossed another log onto the fire, sending up a shower of sparks. He sat down, placing himself squarely in the middle of the only possible escape route. She fought against the tide of panic. “I asked you a question. Where am I?”

“In a cave.” His guttural pronunciation marked him as a native-born Kalith.

“I know that much,” she retorted. “Where is this cave? On which side of the barrier?”

“Neither side. We are caught in between,” he growled as he put a pot of water on to heat. “You did that with your clumsy gift.”

His answer made no sense. “In between where and where?”

He added some dried leaves to the pot of water. “Between the two worlds: Kalithia and the one you call home.” He stirred the pot before looking up at her. “We’ve been working on the barrier, seeking a way to bring light and heat from the caldera into my world.”

She stared at him in disbelief. “That’s insane! Do you have any idea what will happen if you manage to set off an eruption from that caldera?”

The idea of messing around with a super volcano of that magnitude was beyond her comprehension. They were either too greedy to care or too stupid to understand what was at risk. Probably both. She was pretty sure he wasn’t going to listen to her, though.

“I want to return to where I came from.”

He ignored her. Instead, he poured himself a cup of whatever he’d been brewing and took a cautious sip.

“How did we get here?”

“I already told you. You brought yourself here and dragged me along with you when I tried to stop you from attempting to close the hole.”

He poured a second cup and held it out to her. When she didn’t accept it, he said, “I’m not in a hurry to kill the one person who might be able to take me back. Drink. It will warm you and give you energy.”

That wasn’t saying he wouldn’t kill her—just not yet. She inched close enough to accept the drink. Closing her eyes, she drew a deep breath of the steam. It smelled like the tea her mother used to make. The small taste of home soothed her fears enough for her to start thinking of possibilities.

Maybe offering him a bit of information would encourage him to share what he knew. “The tear in the barrier was like nothing I’ve ever seen before. It was like looking into the center of a galaxy of stars.”

He looked at her over the brim of his cup. “Go on.”

“I inherited my family’s gift for working with the barrier and stone, and tried to use it to heal the breach. Apparently that was a mistake.”

“Obviously.” He flexed his fingers as they gripped his cup. “It also wasn’t the first time you’d messed around with that stretch of barrier.”

“No, I’ve been trying to counteract whatever has caused it to sicken. When I tried the other day, it went feral. My companion and I barely made it out alive.”

Clearly unconcerned about their near death experience, he snagged a blanket and wrapped it around his shoulders. “I have grown tired of you undoing what I have managed to accomplish. By going slowly, I had kept the transfer stable.”

“No, you hadn’t. How do you think I found the cave in the first place?” she asked. “I followed the swarms of earthquakes back to their source.”

“And yet you realize that if you’d left it alone, neither of us would be here now.” He finished his drink and tossed the dregs at the fire. “As it is, we are both trapped until the next time the rift opens. With luck, we will be able to return home. If not . . .”

His eyes glittered in the dim light, sending a new shiver of cold fear through her chest. If not, then she was trapped in whatever random world the rift had dumped them in. As frightened as she was of her companion, she feared the unknown that existed outside of the cave even more.

“Have you explored much of this world?”

“I only went a short distance to gather fallen limbs. I saw trees, a night sky, and not much else. I will look again in another few hours—unless the rift returns. Then you will take me back.”

“How can I do that, when I don’t know how I got us here in the first place?”

“That is your problem. One way or another, your life depends on figuring it out.”

His threats weren’t helping matters. “No, whatever your name is. That is our problem.”

Arguing with him wouldn’t get her anywhere, so she sat down and leaned against the wall to rest. She had to figure out how to get back to where they started, to where Penn was waiting for her.

She closed her eyes and drew comfort from remembering the night she’d spent in Penn’s arms. Surely the fates couldn’t be so cruel as to give them such joy, only to rip them apart so soon. The memory of Penn’s blue eyes and roguish smile warmed her from the inside. Somehow she would find her way back to him. At least he had Barak and Larem with him. Between the three of them, they’d move heaven and earth to bring her home and to put a stop to her mysterious companion’s lunacy.

With that happy thought, she finally drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 13

“Sit down, Penn, and eat something. You won’t be any good to Jora if your brain’s fried by too much caffeine and no food.”

Earlier Larem had physically dragged Penn out of the cave to make a run into town while Barak maintained a vigil by the barrier. They’d only convinced him to go because neither of them could drive, and they’d need supplies if they were going to set up camp.

Now that Penn was back at camp, Barak shoved a bowl into his hands. “Come on, Penn. Eat the stew while it’s hot.”

He grunted with displeasure at being ordered around, but they were right. Wherever Jora was, she was going to need him at full strength. The two Kalith warriors were convinced that she’d been sucked into that rift when she disappeared. He wasn’t completely convinced of that, but he’d searched the area outside of the cave for hours and found no sign that she’d gone that way.

When he started shoveling stew into his mouth, Larem and Barak relaxed and picked up their own dinners. For the next few minutes the only sound was the crackling of the small fire they’d built to ward off the damp chill of the cave. Penn had also bought a couple of lanterns, but they were saving those for exploring other caves if Jora didn’t return soon.

Where the hell was she? Her absence had ripped a huge whole in his heart. He’d lost friends before, but Jora meant so much more to him. In her arms, he’d felt powerful—whole once more. Without her, all his fears of inadequacy had come rushing back.

“Jora is strong, Penn. Wherever she is right now, you know she will fight to return to your side.”

The sympathetic expression in Barak’s pale eyes, so similar to Jora’s, almost proved Penn’s undoing, but the Kalith warrior was right. Jora would be weighing her options to pick the one that would offer the greatest chance of returning her to this cave.

“You both saw that tear in the barrier. If anyone else on this world has ever seen such a thing, I’ve never heard about it. The Regents and the Paladins wouldn’t keep something that dangerous secret. How about in the lore of your world?”

Larem was already shaking his head. “There’s nothing I’ve ever heard, but my family’s talents were different than Barak’s or Jora’s.”

Barak stared at the fire, lost in thought. “If there are stories, I am not familiar with them. Berk might be able to find something in the archives if we could contact him. But even if he could, it would take time to do a thorough search.”

Penn wiped up the last bit of gravy with a piece of bread and mulled over the possibilities as he chewed. “Okay, that eliminates that option. So if we don’t know the rules of the games, we’ll have to settle for a SWAG.”

The two Kalith looked at each other in confusion. Finally, Larem asked, “All right, I’ll bite. What’s a SWAG?”

“A scientific wild-ass guess.” For the first time since Jora’s disappearance, Penn smiled. “It means that we take what we know and what we can find out, add it all together, and then give it our best shot.”

“A SWAG—I like that.” Barak offered Penn one of his rare smiles. “First we should take turns getting some rest. While you and Larem sleep, I will make a list of anything I can think of that might help.”

“Take one of my guns, and keep your sword handy in case we get unexpected visitors.” Penn checked over his revolver before passing it to his friend. “Wake one of us in a couple of hours so you can catch some shut-eye, too. I’ll need you both running on all cylinders when the time comes.”

He stretched out on one of the sleeping bags and closed his eyes. After so many years of being on call at the barrier, he’d perfected the ability to fall asleep at a moment’s notice. He hoped it worked this time. He badly needed to dream about holding Jora in his arms again.

“Penn, wake up. Someone’s coming.”

Penn’s Paladin training kicked into high gear, driving him to full alert in one heartbeat. He had his sword in one hand and a gun in the other as soon as he rolled to his feet.

Barak was dousing the last few embers of the fire, throwing the cave into deep shadow. Only the dim glow of the barrier held complete darkness at bay. As Penn positioned himself near the entrance, he listened hard for what had triggered Larem’s alarm.

There—a distant mumble of voices. Two, at least. Using hand signals, Penn motioned for Barak and Larem to position themselves on the opposite side of the entrance from his. Whoever the men were, they were being cautious in their approach.

Stopping a short distance back, one of them called out, “Tarl, what’s going on?”

When there was no response, his partner whispered, “Either Tarl’s gone back to town, or maybe he fell asleep waiting for us.”

They shuffled a few feet closer. “I’m hoping he went back to town. He’ll still be mad, but at least he won’t know how late we were in getting back here.”

“It’s not our fault we couldn’t cross back here and had to use the other entrance to this world. Even he’d have to admit that.”

The second man snorted. “Since when has he been reasonable about anything? He’s the one who has the barrier all messed up, but he’d never admit that.”

Evidently the two idiots mistook silence for safety and came strolling into the cave. Penn smiled in anticipation. They should have remembered that their leader wasn’t the only predator in the park. Before they’d come two steps into the cave, Penn subdued one while his friends took on the second.

Considering his mood, Penn thought he showed considerable restraint in not beating the holy hell out of them. He needed them conscious and talking more than he needed them bruised and bleeding.

“Get their weapons.”

Penn held them both at gunpoint while Barak and Larem searched the men, netting an impressive stash of knives, throwing blades, and two Kalith swords. It was amazing the two hadn’t put up a better fight.

Penn loomed over the two, letting them see his murderous fury up close and personal. “Okay, I’m going to ask the questions; you answer. Say anything I don’t like, and my friend here will test how sharp you’ve kept those snazzy blades you were toting.”

He shot a wolfish smile at Barak. “Do you think it hurts worse being cut with a sharp knife, or a dull one?”

His friend didn’t fail him. “I’m not sure. We can experiment to find out.”

Larem ran his finger along the edge of his own sword. “This one is very sharp. Penn, as a Paladin, I’m sure you keep your sword in top condition.”

The captives had been watching Larem stroke his blades, but at the mention of Paladins, their fearful eyes jerked back in Penn’s direction. They reeked of fear. Good. He wanted them pissing-in-their-pants scared.

He held out his damaged wrist toward them. “I’ve been looking for payback ever since one of you crazy bastards almost took my arm off. My associates killed the one who did it, since I was too busy bleeding out to join the party. Maybe today I’ll get back some of my own.”

Barak put a restraining hand on Penn’s arm. “Hold on. These males look intelligent. I’m sure they will cooperate if you give them half a chance.”

For an alien, Barak understood the rules of the good-cop-bad-cop game pretty well. He offered the captives an encouraging smile. “You will cooperate, won’t you?”

Two pairs of eyes studied the blades Larem was fondling and then turned back to Penn. “Yes. Ask your questions.”

“Where is your leader?”

The taller one of the two answered, “We don’t know. He sent us back to our world to get more equipment, but this part of the barrier refused to come down. We were hit by a surge of energy unlike anything we’ve seen before.”

“We took our equipment over there,” continued the second man, pointing toward the barrier, “and carried it to another small crossing that we’ve used before.”

“How far is this other crossing?”

So far they’d been communicating in English, although both had accents so thick that Penn had to listen hard to follow their explanations. Now they switched to their native tongue, speaking directly to Barak now. Evidently units of time and distance were harder to translate.

When they finished, Barak said. “It’s hard to tell exactly, but no more than a mile, I would guess. You could send me or Larem with one of them to check it out, but here’s the problem. If Larem crosses back into Kalithia, he can’t get back on his own and would be at risk of capture. That’s not a problem if I go, but then I wouldn’t be here if that rift reappears.”

“Son of a bitch.” Frustration boiled up inside of Penn, making him want to destroy something—or someone.

“Both of you go, but leave one of them here. Find out which one works with the barrier the best. Tell him that if he helps me, I’ll let him return home if he promises to stay there. I’ll also want his name to give to a Sworn Guardian—either Berk or Arik.”

The tall one spoke again. “I will stay with the Paladin. My brother Jarner can show you where the crossing is. Once he crosses, he will stay there. I will honor your request for help in exchange for his freedom.”

The younger captive protested. Even though Penn didn’t understand a word he said, it was easy to guess the gist of what was being said.

Finally, he turned to Barak. “No. It is my duty to stay with my brother Berod.”

Barak clearly wasn’t happy about the situation. “Penn, we can’t trust these two, together or apart.”

“We don’t have any choice. Take him anyway. Time is running out for all of us. Besides, if either one of them tries to double-cross us, they both die.” He flexed his hand on the pommel of his sword, smiling.

“We’ll return as quickly as we can.”

“Just find Jora if you can. That’s all that matters.” He pegged the older of the two captives with a hard stare. “One thing you should know. If anything has happened to my woman, everybody dressed in Kalith black dies. Got that?”

“Yes. I would expect no less.”

Barak and Larem quickly escorted their guide out of the cave, leaving Penn alone with the other captive and his fear for Jora. Where the hell could she be? He stared at the barrier and prayed that the aberration returned soon, even if it threatened to destroy the world he was sworn to protect.

“This woman you hunt for must mean much to you.”

Penn glanced at his captive. Since the male’s continued existence depended on her safe return, he deserved the truth.

“Jora b’Larth is everything to me.”

The silence was driving her crazy. Hours had passed with no change in the barrier and nothing being said. Desperate to do something, anything, she asked, “What are you called?”

“Why do you care?” He sounded as bored as she did, but at least he’d spoken.

“I don’t, particularly.” She stood up. “I’m going outside.”

He reached for his sword. “Why?”

“For two reasons. One is that I want to look around some more. The other is personal.”

Her face flamed hot, but why should she be embarrassed? He’d made a similar trip only a short time before. Besides, if he was right about them being trapped in an alien world, where did he think she could go?

“Don’t stay gone long. If the barrier goes into flux again, I don’t want to miss my chance to return home.”

Did he think she was a fool? She wanted to go home every bit as much as he did.

Outside, she took care of one priority quickly, not trusting her nameless captor to allow her much privacy for long. The sky had lightened some since their last foray out of the cave but not much. She didn’t know what to think about that. Were the days and nights longer here than back on Earth, or was there no difference between the two?

She shivered. What if she never got back?

No, she wasn’t going to think that way. She had a damn good reason for wanting to get home: Penn Sebastian.

“Woman, get back here now!”

Jora took off running. When she charged back into the cave she saw that the rift had returned, and she could see the faint outline of two men on the other side. Penn? But as she raised her hands, the rift shrank down and popped out of sight.

With a bellow of frustration, the Kalith male wheeled around and smacked the side of her face hard enough to send her staggering back. At first she felt only shock at the sudden violence, but then her face burned in pain and her ears rang.

Refusing to cower, she stood her ground. “Hit me again, and I’ll skewer you as you sleep. Got that?”

“Try it and die.”

“And then who will get you out of this place?” she sneered. “If you kill me, you could be stuck here for the rest of your miserable life.”

He stepped closer, trying to use his size to intimidate her. “I may not kill you—yet—but I can and will make your live very unpleasant. So far I have kept my hands to myself. That could change.”

“There are warriors hunting for me. If I am harmed, they have friends in two worlds who will hunt you down. Imagine how long it will take you to die at the hands of my Paladin lover.”

Once again his hand came up, but then he let it drop down to his side. “As I said, stay close. If we miss another opportunity, I will not be pleased.”

When he turned away, Jora stuck her tongue out at him. It was childish, but she didn’t care. Penn and his friends would never let this bastard live, but right now she needed him as much as he needed her. They both sat down in sullen silence to wait.

Despite her efforts to stay awake, she must have dozed off, because she was jerked awake when her chin dropped down to hit her chest. This would never do.

Keeping her eyes on the barrier, she said, “We need to take turns sleeping so we don’t miss it again. Who should go first?”

The big jerk ignored her. Fine. Maybe he didn’t need to rest, but she did. She’d lost track of the hours since she’d been dragged into this hellhole. It was impossible to know if it was day or night or even the same year as when she’d left. Who knew how much the feral barrier had twisted everything? She could be on the other side of the universe or only a barrier’s thickness away from her home. Either way, she had no control over the situation and worrying about it only exhausted her meager resources. Right now she needed a respite from the tension and the cloud of hopelessness that threatened to overwhelm her.

At least in dreams, she might find her way back to Penn. She rested her head on her knees and closed her eyes, ignoring the sting of tears. Slowly, she managed to lose herself in sweet memories of being held in Penn’s arms, remembering the hot spice of his kiss and the strength of his warrior’s soul.

He thought that battle scar had made him less of a man, but he was wrong about that. It had only made him stronger. A lesser man would have withdrawn from the field of battle forever, but Penn continued to fight. His Paladin heart required no less of him. She wished she’d told him that.

“It’s coming back!”

A rough hand snagged her braid and hauled Jora to her feet. The combination of pain and a new influx of adrenaline surged through her veins, burning away her fatigue. At full alert, she jerked free of the Kalith’s grasp and put some distance between them. If she did manage to return them to their proper time and place, she would need room to maneuver. Her captor needed her now, but that wouldn’t last past the second they reached safety.

Bringing her hands up, palms out, she studied the jagged tear forming in the center of the barrier. The rupture beat with a feral pulse as it continued to rip holes in the blanket of energy that held other worlds at bay. Jora set her feet farther apart to counteract the dizzying effect of the swirling sickness.

“Make sure that you do exactly what you did before.”

She did not need his unhelpful suggestions. “Shut up and stay out of my way.”

Chanting narrowed her focus on establishing a connection to the roiling energy, opening her body to become a conduit for the powerful force that she drew from her surroundings. The tearing slowed briefly as the healthy energy she was channeling meshed with the twisting rift.

Fire ripped through her, making it more difficult for her to focus. She bit down on her lower lip and forced herself to get closer and closer to the source of her agony. Working through it, passing through it, was the only hope of salvation.

She counted off the beats of the flickering energy. “One, two, three . . .”

The Kalith’s voice joined in. When they were in sync, she risked a glance in his direction. He had his sword in hand, obviously preparing for battle once they made their leap.

She wished she could warn Penn. “Get ready.”

“Are you sure?” the Kalith asked, even as he took off running.

She charged after him and dove headfirst into what looked like the crucible of creation and prayed it wouldn’t be her destruction.

Chapter 14

“What the hell?”

Penn stared in horror at the barrier. Seconds before, it had been a swirling mass of healthy color, vibrant and strong, then its usual hum had become a high-pitched shriek. He and his prisoner covered their ears to save their eardrums from damage.

When the noise dropped off, a ragged tear formed in the center, appearing and then disappearing again and again. His heart lodged in his throat when he caught a brief glimpse of Jora before the hole closed up again.

“Jora!” Only years of experience serving at the barrier stopped him from charging in after her. Even the slightest contact with the barrier would fry a few brain cells; throwing himself at it would be suicidal.

He turned back to his captive. “Get your ass over here. I need to know what to do.”

The Kalith moved up to stand beside Penn. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“Who the hell has?” Penn snapped.

When the hole faded away again, he grabbed the guy by the front of his shirt, jamming the barrel of his revolver under his chin. “This is what you and your boss have done, trying to rip off my world. You’d better pray I get Jora back and we find a way to heal this breach. If we fail, everybody dies.”

He cocked the trigger. “And guess who gets to be first in line.”

Despite the chill in the cave, sweat poured off his captive’s face. Penn shoved the idiot backward as the hum began building again. All that mattered now was helping Jora find her way back.

If the breach opened wide enough, he’d do his damnedest to yank Jora back through to this side or else dive through to her. He couldn’t believe he was even thinking about doing something that crazy, but she needed his help. That was reason enough.

The breach ripped open and a Kalith male came diving through, screaming in pain as he hit the floor of the cave. Penn ignored him as Jora came running toward the shrinking hole, calling Penn’s name as she took a flying leap.

Holy God, if the barrier closed now, it would slice her in half! He grabbed her hands and yanked with all his strength. She slid through just as the rift disappeared with a loud pop. Just that quickly, the barrier stabilized.

Penn clutched Jora to his chest, horrified that she could’ve died right there, right then. As he tried to breathe, a flicker of motion warned him they were under attack. Penn shoved Jora behind him as her Kalith companion charged at them, his sword aimed chest high. Penn blocked the attack with his left arm, taking a deep cut. Ignoring the pain, he fought to keep himself between Jora and the murderous renegade.

The three of them continued in a lethal dance in a wide circle as Penn worked his way around to where he’d dropped his sword to grab Jora’s hands. At the same time, he maneuvered Jora safely toward the passage where she could escape. But that was blocked by the second Kalith, who had now joined in the battle. Son of a bitch, they were so screwed.

“Penn!” Jora feinted to the left and then dove to the right. She rolled to her feet with Penn’s sword in one hand and hers in the other. She tossed him his blade and they stood back-to-back, ready to take on all comers.

God, this was his worst nightmare come true. He couldn’t risk using his revolver this near the barrier, and thanks to his opponent, his left arm was useless. The slash had gone all the way to the bone, leaving his hand numb and unable to grip his sword.

He switched the blade to his right hand, as scared as he’d ever been in his entire life. Not for himself, but for Jora. If he couldn’t kill the bastard coming at them with murder in his eyes, then Jora could die. That was simply unacceptable.

Charging forward, screaming his rage, Penn went on the attack, putting his enemy on the defense and drawing blood. He shouted in triumph as his months and months of training with Barak paid off, fighting the Kalith on his own terms and in the bastard’s own style.

Now that they were both wounded, it came down to which one could hold out the longest. Penn heard the clang of swords as Jora fought for her life against her own opponent.

“Paladin, you’re going to die. Why not make it sooner rather than later? We both know you won’t stay that way.”

Penn sneered. “What’s the matter? Afraid you’ll be the one to bleed out instead?”

He accompanied the words with another furious attack, once again drawing blood. His strength was ebbing faster now, making it imperative that he put an end to this once and for all.

He slowly forced the Kalith to retreat as the barrier went feral again, the hum of energy quickly building to excruciating levels. Penn fought on, ignoring the shrieking noise as he went for the kill. The noise may have distracted the Kalith, for he stumbled, giving Penn the opening he’d been waiting for. The Kalith’s eyes widened in horror, knowing his life was about to end.

At the last second, Penn stayed his thrust, holding the tip of his sword at the male’s throat. One more inch and death would come calling, and they both knew it.

“Surrender or die.”

Penn widened his stance as he waited, fighting against waves of dizziness from blood loss and exhaustion, determined to protect Jora’s back. After the briefest hesitation, the Kalith tossed his sword to the side just as the barrier once again stabilized.

“Now call off your dog.” Penn jerked his head toward the other Kalith. “Or I’ll kill you and go after him.”

The Kalith barked out a command.

His subordinate looked relieved to retire from the battlefield. Jora was breathing hard, but was unharmed. That was the only thing that allowed the two Kalith to live.

“Both of you, facedown on the floor. Now!” he barked. “Jora, get their weapons.”

“Penn! Is it safe to come in?” Barak’s voice called from the passage.

“Come ahead.”

Barak entered first, his sword drawn. Larem shoved their Kalith companion in next, his weapon at the male’s back.

Barak surveyed the cavern. “Looks like we missed all the fun.”

Jora shot him a dirty look. “Penn’s hurt.”

“I’ll help him.” Larem sheathed his sword and drew his knife.

Jora hissed in horror as he started for Penn, and immediately planted herself between them. “What do you think you’re going to do with that?”

Penn snaked his right arm around her shoulders and tugged her against him. “It’s all right. He has some kind of weird Kalith ability to heal.”

The three prisoners watched wide-eyed while Larem chanted softly and ran the tip of his knife along the jagged cut. Penn hissed as the blade heated up, feeling acid hot to his skin. Gradually the pain faded, and the bleeding slowed, then stopped altogether.

When Larem finished with Penn, he used his mojo on the wounded Kalith.

Jora was home, and she was safe. Penn had no words to tell her what that meant to him, so he simply kissed her.

Penn’s kiss curled her toes. When he finally broke it off, he tucked her head under his chin and held her next to his heart. Tears ran down her cheeks. This disaster wasn’t over with yet, but they were together, and that was all that mattered. Right now all she could do was breathe in Penn’s essence, and judging by how hard he was hugging her, he drew comfort from the close contact as well.

Barak finally spoke. “Penn, I hate to bother you, but we’ve got to seal this stretch of barrier and then take out this trash.”

Penn sighed and shifted to face him, keeping Jora at his side. Barak and Larem stood over the prisoners, their swords ready for action.

“Jora, what would you suggest?”

“Barak and I need to close the fissure for good.” She looked to the Kalith for confirmation. “Do you agree?”

Barak’s complexion was even paler than normal. “I do, but I have burned much of my energy in attempting to repair the other barrier that these fools have rendered unstable. We will need to split up in teams to close it for good. Penn, I’d ask the Guardian on the other side for some help. I can draw off their energy to work the stone, and I’m guessing Jora can as well. We will also need someone to stand guard over these three. Perhaps the Guardian’s Blademates can help with that.”

Penn smiled his approval. “Sounds good. Barak, can you do the honors this time?”

“I can.”

He waited until Penn took over guarding the prisoners, then started the process of bringing the barrier down. It winked out to reveal a Sworn Guardian and his Blademates standing battle ready.

Penn took charge of the situation. “Arik, we have captured those responsible for the damage to the barrier. We need your assistance, if you are willing.”

Jora watched the male quickly assess the situation and nod. Then he and his men put away their weapons and stepped across the boundary into this world. Odd—she’d spent her whole life wishing she could meet a suitable Kalith male. Right now she was looking at several prime candidates, but they faded in comparison with Penn.

While Penn explained the situation to the newcomers, Barak spoke briefly with Jora to make sure they were in accord on how best to resolve the barrier’s instability. They were taking a huge chance not only with their own lives, but also with those of the men supporting them. If it all went to hell, there was no telling what kind of destruction would rain down on both worlds.

Barak gave her a quick hug, winking at her when Penn glared at him, then they outlined the plan. He’d take half the men to the second site the Kalith renegades had been using. Since cell phones didn’t work near the barrier, Larem would wait outside the passage until Barak called to say they’d reached their destination. It was a bit intimidating when the remaining men looked to her for guidance, but she drew courage from Penn’s unspoken support.

“When the time comes, you’ll need to line up in a half circle behind me. You don’t have to do anything but stand still, although you may feel a bit strange when I start pulling energy from you.”

The Sworn Guardian approached her. “I am Arik, a Sworn Guardian of Kalithia. Jora b’Larth, it will be our pleasure to serve you.”

“You and your Blade do me honor.”

As she nodded at each man in turn, she noticed Penn frown. He motioned for her to follow him into the passage. Once they were outside, he spoke to Larem.

“We’ll wait for the call. You can go back in.”

His friend surrendered the cell phone without question and disappeared back inside. Jora waited until he was out of sight to speak.

“Penn, what’s wrong?”

He cupped her face in his callused hands. “We don’t know how this is going to turn out. I know you’ll give it your all, and that scares me. Use us up if you have to, Jora, but don’t burn yourself out.”

The bright moon bathed them in its silver light. Penn smiled down at her, his eyes warm and loving. “We’ll all do what we have to, but I didn’t want this to go down without telling you that I love you. I think I have from the second I looked up and saw you standing there in the diner.” He brushed his lips across hers.

Her heart almost burst from happiness. “I love you, too, Penn Sebastian. Now and for the rest of my life, whether it’s measured out in minutes or decades.”

Their kiss was filled with heat and love and desperation. Then the cell phone rang, and the rest of the world came rushing back.

Chapter 15

Penn had never experienced terror like this. Jora stood at the front line of their attack on the unstable barrier. If disaster struck, she would bear the brunt of the backlash. He hated—hated—knowing there was nothing he could do about that.

But she was a warrior in her own right, even if her weapon was a magic he couldn’t see and didn’t understand. When she glanced back at him one last time he smiled his reassurance, hoping it was enough.

Jora began to chant. He stood shoulder to shoulder with Arik on one side and Larem on the other; the hair on his arms and neck stood on end as her voice increased in volume. He could feel her demand for more power pounding in his head and pressing on his chest, making it almost impossible to breathe. If it was this hard on a man his size, what was it doing to her?

But there she stood, her shoulders back, her head held high as she called on her special abilities to save the world. The barrier was streaked with sickly colors and small tears. One of Arik’s Blademates collapsed from the strain, but the rest of them stood firm.

The rift ripped through the barrier, burning bright enough to light the caves in both worlds. Arik dropped to the ground without a sound, followed quickly by Larem. That left only Penn to keep Jora grounded as she started to waver. With all the strength he could muster he took a step forward, reaching out to put his hands on her shoulders.

Energy sizzled through his feet from the rock below, ripping up through his body and out the palms of his hands to Jora. Her chanting increased in volume and strength. Small jolts of lightning crackled along the boundary line, leaving the clean burn of ozone in their wake.

With a loud crack, the rift exploded in a burst of sound and light. Jora’s head snapped back, and her knees collapsed. Penn managed to break her fall before he joined her in a heap on the floor.

Someone was groaning, and there was a hundred-pound rock sitting on Penn’s chest. No, not a rock. A woman. His woman. Jora. Was she—? He cut that thought off immediately. Instead, he concentrated on remembering how to make his hands work. One finger twitched, then a second. Finally, he lifted his hand up enough to touch Jora’s sweet face.

Her skin was warm. Good. He rested his fingertips on her throat, feeling for a pulse. Thump, thump, thump. Very good. His hand dropped back down, his energy spent.

Jora moaned again, then lifted her head. “Did we do it?”

They both looked toward the barrier, which was humming along, happy and healthy.

Penn was too tired to smile. “It looks good to me. We’re not dead, and the world hasn’t been destroyed.”

She rested her palm on the floor of the cave. “The pressure is gone.”

It took a while for them to recuperate enough to get up off the floor of the cave.

Penn offered Larem a hand up, and then Arik. Both were tired but otherwise unharmed. Their three prisoners weren’t so lucky. The one Jora had fought with was unconscious and unresponsive, while his buddy was clearly dead. So was the third one.

Larem knelt down to see what he could do for the lone survivor. “He won’t make it.”

Jora looked sick. “I didn’t mean to kill them.”

Larem stood. “I’m guessing that it wasn’t anything you did, Jora. I suspect their energy signatures were tied to the rift. The backlash killed them when the rift disappeared.”

Penn didn’t know if Larem was right or not, but he was grateful for the man’s attempt to ease Jora’s mind.

“Arik, when Barak gets back from the other crossing with your other men, we’ll send you home.”

The Sworn Guardian nodded. “That would be a good thing. I think I could sleep for a week.” He held his hand out to Jora. “You have done our people a great service. If you ever have need of my sword, you only have to ask.”

“Thank you, Sworn Guardian.”

“Call me Arik.” The male’s smile held too much warmth for Penn’s comfort. “If you would ever like to visit your homeland, I would be honored to serve as your escort.”

Jora shook her head. “I’ve seen enough of other worlds to last me a lifetime. Besides, I’m planning on making my home wherever Penn is.”

“He is a lucky man.” Arik held out his hand to Penn. “The offer of my sword extends to you as well, Paladin.”

“And mine to you, Sworn Guardian.”

Barak came limping in, supporting Arik’s Blademate. “He’s fine, just tired. Let me rest for a bit, and I’ll send them home.”

Jora said, “With Penn’s help, I should be able to do it.”

She reached for his hand and began chanting. Just that quickly, she created a pathway for Arik and his men. They slipped through, dragging the three casualties across as well.

“Their deaths will serve as a warning to others who seek to do evil as they did.” Arik saluted them with his sword as the barrier snapped back into place.

Many hours later, back in their motel room, Penn said, “Jora, I have to go back to Seattle.”

She lifted her head off his chest and glanced at the clock. They’d been asleep for over twelve hours. “When?”

He toyed with a strand of her hair. “Sooner rather than later. For one thing, I have to take Barak and Larem back to Seattle.”

Her pulse sped up. Where did that leave the two of them?

Penn held up his right hand and flexed it. “My wrist is stronger than I thought it was, but I believe this is as good as it’s going to get. I’ve been afraid to admit that before now, because I didn’t think there was any kind of life for me other than swinging a sword.”

He smiled down at her. “But because of you, that’s all changed now. And I owe it to my friends in Seattle to tell them in person that I’m going to be moving here—if you’ll have me.” His hand stroked up and down her back. “Will you marry me and build a new life with me, Jora b’Larth?”

She heard his heartbeat, strong and steady, as she laid her head on his chest again, and knew his love was just as steady and true.

“I can’t think of anything I want more, Penn Sebastian. Forever.”

Click through
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from

ALEXIS MORGAN

Bound by Darkness
and

The Darkness Beyond

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Bound by Darkness

“Are you hurt?” He held his hand out to brush her hair away from her face, but jerked it back when she flinched at his touch.

Fine. Her response pissed him off royally, to quote his roommate, even if he understood why she felt that way. The sooner he got her topside the better. “Come.”

Sasha shrank away from him. “You’re one of them, aren’t you?”

He ignored how much her reaction hurt. He’d always known she’d hate him when she finally saw him for what he really was. “Right now what I am is your way out of here.”

She retreated another step. “But where are we going? The elevators are back that way.”

He snagged her arm before she gave in to panic and glared down at her. “So is the fighting, Sasha. Too many from both worlds are already bleeding, so you’ll understand if I’d rather not kill any more of my people. Now, follow me or not. It’s your choice.”

He let go of her, hating the fear in her eyes when she looked at him and hating himself for his part in putting it there. Then he walked away, stopping long enough to retrieve his blade before moving on. Surely she’d show the good sense to stay with him. If not, he’d force the issue, but he hoped she’d at least trust him enough to get her to safety.

•   •   •

Sasha stared at the four broken bodies fallen on the ground. So much blood. Its bitter copper scent filled her head and overloaded her senses. Her stomach churned, foul acid burning the back of her throat. God, would this nightmare never end? It had been hours since she’d last eaten, so it was nothing but dry heaves as she leaned against the wall and retched.

Please, let it stop. She needed to follow Larem even if he was one of them—Kalith, Other, the name didn’t matter. If she lost sight of him, her life might very well end right there in the bloody passageway. She tried to straighten up between heaves, but that only made the pain worse. After stumbling forward a few steps, she had to stop and close her eyes to ward off the dizziness.

As she did, she felt someone beside her and panicked. “No, please no! Get away!”

“Sasha, calm down. It’s me.”

She sagged in relief at the sound of Larem’s deep voice. Despite everything, he hadn’t abandoned her.

“Hold still and don’t fight me.”

His accent was deeper than usual, but his voice was far more gentle than it had been only seconds before. His hand, cool and soothing, rested lightly on her forehead, and his arm slid around her waist, supporting her weight.

He murmured something. The words were unclear, perhaps in his native tongue, but their effect was miraculous. The nausea disappeared almost immediately, as did the cramping. When he removed his hand, she looked up into his pale gray eyes.

“Better?”

She nodded. “Much.”

The chill came flooding back into his gaze as he stepped away and retrieved his sword. “Now, let’s get out of here.”

She glanced back toward the other end of the passage, careful to avoid looking at the bodies along the way, and then followed Larem around the corner. He was moving fast enough that she almost had to run to keep up with him.

She had so many questions for him—now that her brain was starting to function again—but she suspected she wouldn’t like his answers. Like, why had he let her think he was human? She’d known there were Kalith living among the Paladins, but no one had even hinted that they had the run of the place. Was he even supposed to be down here?

Now wasn’t the time to worry about it, not when her life depended on him. Her eyes strayed to the bloody blade he’d wielded with such skill and terrible grace. Would she ever get over the horror of seeing four lives ended right in front of her? Or the knowledge that she’d come so close to being—no, don’t go there. What might have happened didn’t matter right now.

Larem came to an abrupt halt. “Quiet now. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves. Wait until I make sure the way is clear.”

Sasha froze, her ears ringing with her ragged breath and pounding heart. Gradually, other sounds began to make sense. Horrible sense. Swords banging and clanging. Screams of pain and whimpers of agony. Larem progressed a few feet, holding his sword out to the side as if expecting to be attacked.

Finally, he motioned her forward. “Don’t look.”

But of course she did.

The ground was littered with bodies. She watched as a line of Paladins formed up. They slowly pushed forward, forcing the ragged band of Others to retreat back across the barrier. Men in guard uniforms were busy dragging the dead and wounded Paladins back out of the way, leaving the Others where they’d fallen.

Larem drew back beside her. “Sasha, snap out of it! We’ve got to get the hell out of here. Those guards might not hurt you, but they’ll come after me given half a chance. I do not want to die because of your stupidity.”

Okay, enough was enough. “It wasn’t my stupidity. Lonzo left me a note telling me to meet him down here.”

“Like hell he did. He had car trouble and didn’t get back until just before the barrier failed.”

“But—”

“That’s enough!”

Larem all but dragged her along until finally he stopped outside an elevator. As soon as she saw the number pad next to it, her heart sank.

“Larem, my code won’t work. We’re trapped down here until Devlin sounds the all clear.” Her voice went up an octave as she spoke; the thought of spending another minute trapped in this hell was unbearable.

Larem was already punching numbers into the security system. “This one will work.”

Sure enough, she heard the low rumble that signaled the elevator was on its way. She leaned against the wall, relieved beyond words. As fried as she was feeling, she still wondered why an Other would’ve been trusted with a high-level security code.

The more she thought about it, the more obvious the answer. It wasn’t his code at all. Someone had broken protocols by giving it to him, most likely one of the Paladins. Under the circumstances, she wasn’t about to complain.

She stepped to the back corner of the elevator and considered how best to handle the situation. “Thank whoever gave you the code. Tell him there will be no repercussions for the security breach.”

Her good intentions seemed to only make Larem madder. “That’s awfully generous of you, considering he broke your precious rules to save your life.”

“I didn’t mean it like that. I understand why he gave the number to a . . .” She stopped. She would do better to keep her mouth shut.

But it was too late. “A what, Sasha? An alien? An Other? An animal? How about a monster?”

Each question was an arrow-sharp accusation. “I’m sorry, Larem. I was trying to do the right thing.”

He turned toward her, his eyes burning with fury. “The right thing would’ve been to stay the hell out of places you don’t belong. Because of you, my friend delayed his arrival below in order to share that number and the location of this elevator with me. As it is, there aren’t enough Paladins to hold back the invasion. How many were placed at extra risk because he was late to the fight or because they were concerned for your safety and not totally focused on the battle?”

Dear God, she hadn’t thought about that. Even though it wasn’t her fault, she’d inadvertently put others at risk. “Regardless of what you think, I didn’t go down there uninvited. I’m telling you, Lonzo left me a note.”

He stalked toward her, dropping his bloody sword to the floor as he cornered her. “Then let’s see it.”

She held out her empty hands. “It’s gone. I must have dropped it. God, Larem, none of this was supposed to happen. All I can say is that I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, well, that doesn’t mean I have to forgive you. Because of you, I betrayed my vow to protect my people. Those Kalith died at my hand, and I have to find some way to live with that. As you now realize, I am Kalith, just as they were.”

He was standing so close that she could feel the tension thrumming through his body. This was no time to notice how long his eyelashes were or how they framed his intense eyes. The memory of what they shared that night at the zoo flashed through her mind.

Her hand lifted to touch his cheek. “But you’re not like them.”

He shook his head. “No, I’m not, but only because they were sick with the need for light. That’s the only difference.”

At her touch, he tangled his fingers in her hair, tilting her face up toward his. “But one thing you would do well to remember, Sasha Willis—I might not be human, but I am a man. You enjoyed my kiss once. Think you will enjoy it this time, knowing what I am?”

Then his arms snapped around her and his angry mouth crushed down on hers. When she gasped in shock, his tongue swept past her lips. She’d never tasted pure fury before, but she had no doubt that’s what was flavoring Larem’s kiss. She should push back, should fight to wrest control from him, but rather than feeling threatened, she felt safe. Rather than this being a claiming, Larem’s kiss was a cleansing, washing away some of the fear and horror of the past half hour. A small voice in the back of her mind told her this was crazy, that she should be revolted by the prospect of kissing this . . . what?

Before she could figure out the answer to that question, Larem ripped his mouth away from hers and lurched back to the other side of the elevator. He was breathing hard. His mouth that had felt so soft and forgiving against hers was now a straight slash of anger.

To add insult to injury, he scrubbed at his lips with the back of his hand as if to wipe away her taste. The soft ping of the elevator finally reaching its destination echoed in the heavy silence between them.

As the two of them stalked out, she stopped to say, “This didn’t happen.”

He smirked down at her. “Do you really think Devlin Bane won’t find out that you were down there? Or that you almost managed to get not just yourself, but me, killed?”

“Not that.” She jerked her hand between the two of them. “I mean this—us. This didn’t happen and it won’t again.”

“Why? Afraid what it will do to your precious plans if it gets out that you’ve been sullied by an Other?”

Okay, that did it. “Forget it. I’m out of here.”

She marched away, her shoulders squared, her heart aching. Darn that man anyway! How did all this go spinning so far out of control? No matter how hateful Larem had been, he’d still risked his life to save hers.

Her father might think all Others were a subhuman life-form, but she now knew better. Clearly Larem was a man of honor, one who was suffering because of what that honor had just demanded of him. All because of her.

Okay, so she’d try one last time. But when she looked back, he was already walking away.

“Larem? About what you did—thank you.”

For a second she thought he might have slowed down, but he never glanced back. It was surprising how much that hurt. She ignored the renewed pain and moved on down the hall herself.

After everything that had happened, it was tempting to call it quits for the day. But she couldn’t—wouldn’t. No, she’d return to her office until she knew the situation was under control. If things were bad enough, as the Regents’ representative she might need to put in a call for assistance from another sector, either in the form of supplies or even for reinforcements until the Seattle Paladins were back at full strength.

A certain Kalith warrior wasn’t the only one who understood the meaning of duty.

The Darkness Beyond

D.J. bent low and started forward, his gun in one hand, sword in the other. The blade would be his first choice of weapons, but he couldn’t risk the Other getting the upper hand with Reggie depending on D.J. to rescue her.

The Other rose up to look around. Had the guy decided that he’d only been imagining someone dogging his footsteps? Maybe, because after ducking down briefly, the Other stood again to stare up the trail. After a few seconds, he started forward, his sword at the ready. D.J.’s prey moved slowly, his head sweeping from side to side, testing the night air and hunting using his sense of smell.

It was easy to know the instant the male picked up D.J.’s scent. The Other froze in midstep, slowly bringing his sword up into attack position. From where D.J. stood, he could take the Other out with a single shot. Tempting as it was, D.J. holstered his gun and followed the Kalith, Larem’s sword in his hand.

He was able to get surprisingly close before the guy realized he was no longer alone. He’d started backing up, only to realize that his prey stood right behind him.

D.J.’s predatory nature had him smiling. “Looking for me?”

The Other didn’t hesitate but spun and charged forward, swinging his sword in an arc designed to slash D.J.’s head from his shoulders. He blocked the blow with his own blade and shoved the bastard back a few steps.

D.J. taunted his opponent. “Tsk, tsk, is this how you usually greet guests in Kalithia? I didn’t see any of us trying to kill you while you were in my world.”

He went on the attack as he spoke. “Of course, I would’ve skewered both you and your buddy had I gotten the opportunity.”

The tip of his blade sliced open the Other’s cheek. Blood flowed in dark contrast to his pale skin, but the wound was more painful than serious.

“Did I mention that was my woman you kidnapped?” D.J. danced forward and marked the male’s other cheek the same way. “Tell me who has her and why, and I promise to ease your passing.”

The Other rejoined the battle, doing his own fair share of taunting in heavily accented English. “You will die screaming in my world, Paladin. I will celebrate your death by taking your woman to my pallet. I have already tasted her kiss and held her body against mine.”

D.J. fought to control his burning fury, knowing cold hate served him better in a battle to the death. He studied his opponent’s technique. The Other was good, but not great. No way this guy had the skills of a Sword Guardian. He might get lucky, but he’d never defeat D.J. on skill alone.

One thing was clear. The Other wouldn’t offer any useful information, not unless D.J. subdued him long enough to use some creative interrogation techniques. There wasn’t time for that, and it was doubtful the information would be reliable anyway.

But from the increasing panic in the guy’s fighting style, the dance was about to turn lethal. So far D.J. had managed to stay out of striking distance, but it was going to come down to stamina or bad luck.

With a bellow loud enough to wake the dead, the Other charged one last time, nicking D.J.’s sword arm and then shoving him backward. D.J. ignored the stinging pain and pushed back, causing the Other to lose his footing right at the edge of the drop-off.

For a handful of slow-motion seconds the Other hovered there, his arms pinwheeling until he finally lost his balance and went flying backward over the edge. His scream echoed through the valley, only to be cut off in midnote when his body crashed onto the rocks below.

D.J. peered over the edge in a futile attempt to determine if the Other was still breathing. All he could tell was that the Kalith wasn’t moving. Rather than wasting his time climbing down to make sure, D.J. opted for retrieving his pack and taking off down the trail after Reggie.

If the Other’s dying scream had carried as far as the campfire, his partner might panic. At the very least, he’d be waiting for D.J. now, most likely armed and ready to use Reggie as a hostage.

This time, D.J. wouldn’t hesitate to use the Glock. He ran full out, grateful for the boots that Barak had loaned him. They made little noise as he tore through the darkness. As he ran, he ignored the pain in his arm, his near exhaustion, and his lungs’ struggle to filter enough oxygen from the thin air.

All that mattered was getting to Reggie.

Her captor was practically twitching with nerves. So far, Jeban had been the calm one, but with Kolar gone so long, he paced restlessly, stopping every so often to listen to the night.

She knew the instant he sensed something because he turned in her direction, his pale eyes reflecting the flames of the campfire. His hand hovered over the pommel of his sword, as if unsure about drawing his weapon. What had he heard that had him so freaked out? Rather than sit there on the ground, she rose to her feet, not sure what she intended to do. But whatever was about to happen, she’d face it head-on.

“What’s wrong, Jeban?” she asked, even though she doubted he’d actually answer. “Are your friends coming?”

He shook his head. “They aren’t due until late tomorrow afternoon. Kolar went hunting. It appears he found something.”

No, not something. Someone.

The two of them stood staring off into the darkness. She didn’t know about Jeban, but she couldn’t see much of anything beyond the circle of flickering light cast by the campfire. She tried closing her eyes, hoping that she’d be able to hear better that way.

After a few seconds of continued silence, a horrifying scream ripped through the night, only to be cut off abruptly, unfinished. The night grew quiet again, but this time with a feeling of building tension. Jeban didn’t hesitate. He drew his sword and then yanked Reggie close to his side, the blade at her throat.

“I would guess the hunt has ended,” he whispered near her ear. “The question is, which hunter was successful?”

With chill of cold steel against her skin, Reggie could neither talk nor even swallow for fear the sword would draw blood. Her instincts told her that someone had died up there on the trail. There was nothing to do now but wait and pray that the footsteps running through the night belonged to D.J. and not Kolar.

Time came to a screeching halt. For an eternity, it was just her, Jeban, and the pounding of her heart. Her captor had turned to stone, his body stiff with anticipation. His gaze remained trained on some invisible point in the impenetrable darkness beyond. What was he sensing that she wasn’t? Wave after wave of chills washed through her, fear quickly eroding her self-control.

Please, God, she didn’t want to die alone in this alien world, but neither would she go down without fighting. Calling upon all her years of training, she yanked her focus away from the anxiety churning in her chest and on to the externals.

She could hear her sensei’s gravelly voice in her head. Breathe in and breathe out, slow and steady. Control yourself even if you cannot control the situation.

Good advice. As she gradually calmed down, she realized there was now a hair’s breadth more room between her neck and Jeban’s blade. If he so much as flinched, she’d go on the attack, using her bare hands if necessary.

Suddenly, she could make out the vague shape of someone coming toward them. One minute the trail was empty, and the next, as if forming from the darkest of the shadows themselves, a man stepped into the farthest reaches of the firelight. He wore all black and a Kalith cloak, the hood pulled down close to his face.

Her heart sank as he calmly strode toward them, everything about him screaming that he didn’t doubt his welcome. At first glance, she assumed it was Kolar. But then she looked again. After hours of trailing after the Kalith, she knew how Kolar moved. And this wasn’t him. She was sure of it.

The weight of the silence pressed down on her, making it hard to breathe and even harder to hope. If something had happened to Kolar, it didn’t necessarily translate to this guy being on her side.

Jeban shifted his weight, the first movement he’d made since he’d grabbed her. She leaned in the opposite direction, but he only tightened his hold.

Then he rattled off something in his native language. Whatever he said, it clearly wasn’t meant to be friendly. The newcomer showed no reaction at all, instead continuing his approach without a break in his step. If he was at all worried, it sure didn’t show.

Jeban spoke again, this time clearly in warning. He was growing more agitated by the newcomer’s refusal to answer because he once again pressed the blade of his sword against Reggie’s neck.

“I will kill her.” This time he spoke in English.

The hooded figure paused a short distance away and tossed the edge of his cloak back over his shoulders as he drew his weapon. A Kalith sword. Then she saw the gun in his other hand.

For the first time the new arrival spoke. “If she dies, so will you, and it will be a death without honor. You will die screaming for mercy, just as your buddy did.”

“Who are you?” Jeban demanded as he dragged Reggie back a few steps.

The stranger followed them, step for step. Then he tipped his head back and let the hood drop onto his shoulders. He was no stranger after all, at least not to her.

“Reggie, has this bastard or his dead partner hurt you?” D.J.’s dark eyes met hers, promising retribution if they had.

“I’ll be all right now,” she whispered around the pressure of the blade on her throat. “I knew you’d come.”

Her captor didn’t like that remark one bit. His hand dropped from her throat to her breast. “Tell me, human, is she really that good? That you risk dying for the chance to have her underneath you again?”

Did Jeban see his own death reflected in the Paladin’s angry gaze? Reggie hoped so. She might not survive the night, but at least the two men who had dragged her into this hellish world would pay for their crimes.

Then she realized that Jeban was now pointing his sword toward D.J. rather than at her. This might be her one chance to break his hold on her. She slowly blinked three times right at D.J. and then slowly tilted her head to the side, trying to convey her intent. The corner of his mouth twitched up in a small smile.

“So, tell me, Other, do you prefer death by bullet or blade? This sword was loaned to me by a Kalith friend, if you’re curious. Didn’t want you to think I stole it off your dead friend.”

As soon as Jeban started to respond, Reggie lunged to the side, dropping to roll out of his reach and leave him an open target for D.J. The Kalith charged after her, his sword raised and ready to slash down in a lethal arc. She had instinctively held up her arm to block the blow when a series of shots rang out. Jeban’s murderous fury evolved into a look of stunned surprise as his life ended in a burst of blood and brains.

Pure panic took over as Reggie stared at the aftermath. Jeban lay sprawled on the ground, crumpled and broken. His unseeing eyes stared at her in dead bewilderment as someone screamed loud and long. Even when she realized that she was making all the noise, she couldn’t seem to stop. It went on and on, ripping her throat raw.

Damn, D.J. hadn’t meant for Reggie to catch the brunt of the Other’s death. But if he’d delayed even a second longer to see if she could get out of range, the Other could’ve gutted her with his sword. Why the fucker had gone after her instead of D.J. was a mystery, unless he thought to hurt D.J. in the worst way possible by taking her life.

If Reggie had to end up covered in gore, at least it was the Other’s. D.J. paused to cover the body with the guy’s own cloak before kneeling down to wrap Reggie in his arms. She buried her face against his chest, still keening her pain and fear.

“Shhh, honey, it’s over for now. I’ve got you. You’re safe.”

Slowly, her sobs slowed down and then stopped. But when she tried to wipe away the tears on her cheeks, her hands came away covered in blood.

She held out her bloody palms, her hysteria ramping up again. “Get it off! Please get it off!”

He’d love to accommodate her, but he had to prioritize what came next. He caught her hands in his as he looked around the Kalith’s camp.

“I will take care of this, but it will have to wait until I make sure there aren’t any more of these bastards in the immediate vicinity. By the looks of things, this place was set up for more than just the two of them and you.”

Reggie looked back toward the shrouded figure on the ground with a shudder.

“Jeban said the rest would be here late tomorrow.” Her words came out in hiccups as she fought to control the sobs.

“Good. That’s real good, Reggie. Okay, I’ll go back and get some water. The creek I passed is some distance away, but I promise I’ll haul ass. Will you be all right alone while I’m gone?”

“No, wait.” She held out a shaky hand to point in the opposite direction. “Past the tents. There’s water that way.”

Better yet. “Good, we’ll go wash all of that off you.”

He picked her up and carried her over to the side of a quiet pool of water that fed into a narrow stream. After setting her back down, he rooted through his pack for something Reggie could use to clean up with. A spare shirt would have to do. He tore off a strip to use as a washcloth while keeping the rest for a makeshift towel.

Then he tested the temperature of the water with his hand.

“The water is clear but a little cold.” He considered their options, none of them good. Best to just get on with it.

“Reggie, your clothes are covered in blood, so I need you to strip them off. Afterward, you can cover up with my cloak and sit by the fire while I wash out your clothes and hang them up to dry.”

She nodded, but her hands were shaking too hard to manage by herself. D.J. reluctantly took over, starting with her shoes and then working his way up to her tunic and trousers. Yeah, he’d been wanting to get Reggie naked, but not like this.

For both their sakes, he left her bra and panties in place for her to deal with. He did his honorable best not to notice how her nipples pebbled up in the evening chill or the way her narrow waist gave way to the gentle flare of her hips. God, he was a bastard for even thinking about such things.

He held out the pieces of his shirt. “You’re good to go. Use these to wash up.”

Then he noticed a dark streak caught up in the curls of her hair. When he touched it, his hand came away bloody.

“Uh, looks like you need to wash your hair, too.”

Her eyes widened in horror as the implication of what he was saying sank in. “How am I going to do that from the edge of the water?”

She was right. “Maybe a quick rinse won’t get the job done. Maybe you should just go for broke and take a quick bath.”

Reggie studied the dark sheen of the water suspiciously, but finally she nodded. “All right, if you think it’s safe.”

“It should be,” he assured her, mentally crossing his fingers. “Give me a second so I can see what kind of supplies I have that you can use.”

He dumped the pack out on the ground and studied the contents: shampoo, a toothbrush, a bar of soap, and even a spare tunic. Damn, Devlin and Barak had thought of everything.

He arranged the items on a flat rock next to the edge of the water. “Here you go, Reggie. I’ll turn my back, but I’ll stay close by in case you need me.”

He did as promised, but listened to make sure she was doing all right. The rustle of fabric sliding down skin, the almost silent plop of something dropping down on the ground, and then the splash of water, followed by a bloodcurdling squeal.

What the hell? He spun back around, gun in hand and ready to defend her against all comers. Except no one was there except a totally nude Reggie, standing thigh deep in the water and glaring back at him.

“I thought you said the water was just a little cold!”

He tried not to laugh, he really did. But she was so cute, standing there naked and absolutely furious. She had no idea how clearly he could see in the dark, so she wasn’t trying to cover up. At least the little lost girl was gone, momentarily replaced by her usual feisty nature.

“Yeah, I may have exaggerated a bit on that point,” he said, trying to sound apologetic and failing miserably.

“You think, you big jerk?”

She gave him a disgusted look and then gingerly waded out farther into the water. “Remind me to get even with you for this.”

Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

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