Dealers of Light (32 page)

“Cara, my dear,
” Alistair said, his eyes kind, but tinged with worry. “A lot has changed in your life recently. Are you all right?”

“A lot’
s changed for all of us.” She sat in a chair beside him where she could reach down to pet Dusty.

“True.” Alistair nodded and sip
ped his brandy.

“Did it bother you?” Cara asked after several moments.

“What?”

“You know
…killing those men.”

He leaned forward,
resting his elbows on his knees. “Rationally speaking, I knew it had to be done, and it would prevent other innocent people from being killed…”

“But?”

“Yes. But.” He shook his head. “It was a bloody shock to actually see it happen, to take part in it.”

“There are others out there, Alistair. We have to kill them
, too.” She sat up and gulped her wine. “Do you think it will get…easier?”

He
sucked in a deep breath then let it out through pursed lips. “I don’t know. I just don’t know.”

The
door clicked open as Rolf entered. “How are you?” His eyes were hooded.

“Okay.” She shrugged
. He’d suffered so much more than her. “I’ll deal with it.”

He
poured himself a glass of wine. “We’re leaving in the morning.”

“Alistair told me
.”

“We need to
return and stop Desmond before his control can increase any further.” He crossed to settle into a chair beside them.

“I understand.” She glanced
down, swirling her wine.

Alistair leaned back. “You know, I’ve been digging into the history of this Andean opal more
, and it seems to have amazing powers. We need to be very careful when the time comes to confront Desmond. In fact, it might be a good idea to find a way to take the stone as our primary objective.”

Cara
’s head popped up.
Of course, we have to take the stone
.

“Interesting,” Rolf murmured. “
Good point, Alistair.”

“
Then he’d be just another Taker, right?” Cara asked.

“He’
s still very powerful, but without the stone he’ll be vulnerable, unable to link with the other cities,” Rolf said. “I think you’re right, Alistair. We take Charleston then we go after the stone.”

C
oldness enveloped Cara, and she hugged her arms against her chest. Their idyllic island interlude was over.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Three days later,
Avalon
passed from the Atlantic into Charleston Harbor. Cara peered out the window of the salon but the gray curtain of heavy rain outside hid any sign of the shore.

During their trip, the group
remained subdued, but continued to practice fighting everyday unless the seas were too rough. They watched the news, but no one had caught on to Desmond’s web of control. The satellite reception had been disrupted by the storm for the last few hours, so the TV and its string of innocent news stories remained silent.

Jittery
anticipation kept Cara pacing across the carpet of the salon the closer they came to their destination. She stopped at a window then glanced at Rolf sitting by the dining table studying a chart, avoiding eye contact—as he had throughout most of the passage. She’d only had direct encounters during the daily practice sessions for shielding. Now, they were able to merely hold hands and project the shield. Every time they practiced it became easier and faster. But every other minute of each day he managed to avoid her.

“Can you see anything
?” Amber came up behind her, her voice barely audible over the roar of rain beating the windows.

Cara
shook her head. “No, it’s a deluge out there.”

“We’re close
, though, we should be at the dock in about thirty minutes,” Rolf picked up his foul-weather coat and jogged upstairs to the pilothouse.

Cara paced
across the room, arms crossed over her chest. Soon they would be back in enemy territory, and they had no idea what to expect. Rolf returned with information that the city marina had answered their call and reserved a slip for them. That was all they knew at this point.

“I’ve nev
er been here before.” Shana stared out a window on the other side of the salon.

“It’s a beautiful old city,” Alistair said. “I have lovely memories of staying here in the past.”

“Not long now.” Calm assurance marked Rolf’s features as he rolled up his chart, which relieved Cara’s tension a bit. “The rain is easing a little, too.”

“What’s the plan?” Tor asked.

“We know the Takers’ address from the records Sean downloaded, unless they’ve moved. But I want to see it for myself to determine how many Takers are involved. I need to feel their energy. Once we dock, we’ll wait for nightfall. I’ll go to the house where they’re staying and confirm the location. Once I do, I’ll come back, and we’ll work out how we’re going to attack them.” Rolf’s eyes slid to Cara and warmed with tenderness. Then he quickly looked away.

“I wonder how many of them there are
.” Shana sank down beside Marc on the couch. He put a hand on her knee and she smiled, covering his hand with her own.

“From the information Sean
hacked, the groups are fairly small, probably no more than five or six,” Rolf said.

Cara bit her lip.
“I wish you would take someone with you.”

He smiled and
shook his head, turning to the others. “Keep the window shades down while in port. We don’t want anyone seeing us working out or being unusually active. Stay on the boat and keep your outside activity to a minimum. That goes especially for me and Cara. We know Desmond is aware of us.”

The door at the top of the steps leading to the pilot
house opened, and Sean stuck his head in. “Sir, we’re approaching the City Marina now.”

“I’ll be right there,” Rolf said to Sean,
then turned to the group. “Stay inside and let the crew tie the boat up. Go ahead and lower the blinds.”

As he left, fear surg
ed into Cara’s chest like a hammering fist. She pushed the emotion away with firm determination and started the process of covering the windows. The vibration of the engines changed, lessening in intensity. The boat slowed in its approach, and the pounding rainfall became light splatters. The others ran to the windows to help lower the blinds then remained there peeking out between cracks.

The dock finally
slid into view. Only one or two people in rain gear straggled along the docks in the gray gloom. A completely different scene from sparkling blue Bermuda.

Two
men in yellow foul-weather suits stood on the T-head ready to catch ropes from
Avalon
’s crew. Rolf stayed out of sight and let his crew secure the ship until the dock hands left and there was no one in sight.

“Not much going on in this rain
.” Marc stepped away from the window, running his fingers through his hair repeatedly. Beads of sweat hung above his upper lip.

Amber peek
ed through the blinds. “It doesn’t look like it’s been affected by the Net.”

“What were you expecting, sweetheart?” Tor came up behind her and nuzzled her neck.

“I don’t know, zombies or something.” She giggled.

“Zombies are the dead raised to life by some spell
. What are people with reduced Light called, I wonder?” Alistair put his hands in his pants’ pockets and rocked back on his heels.

“Good question,
” Tor said. “How about The Sucked?”

“Half-lights,” said Shana.

“Dimmers,” said Amber.

“
That’s it.” Cara pointed to Amber. “Dimmers.”

They laughed, but with quiet chuckles followed by guilty silence. They were all uneasy about the next few days and their plan to kil
l the Takers—Desmond’s Takers, this time.

“Desmond’s Dimmers,” Alistair said. “It has a certain ring to it. Not pleasant, of course.”

“Desmond’s the new Hitler,” Tor said. “He’s practicing genocide.”

“Creep,” Shana said
, shaking her head.

“Evil creep,” Amber added
, chewing a nail.

Cara
glanced up when Rolf entered from the side door to the deck. He shrugged out of his foul-weather jacket and water drops scattered on the carpet. “
Whew
, finally tied up.”

“At least
it’s stopped raining.” Shana dropped the blind back in place.

“
Good. I didn’t relish the thought of roaming through the city in that downpour.” Rolf rubbed his hand over his wet hair.

“Desmond has people on the
alert for you,” Cara said, her eyes on his black spiky hair. “Maybe we should change your appearance.”

“What do you have in mind?” He eyed her skeptically.

“Change some part of your appearance, like your hair.”

“Are you suggesting I dye my hair?”

“Well, he’d be stupid not to have his people focused on capturing you,” Cara said. “And a man dressed all in black with black hair is hardly subtle.”

“He knows about
you
, too.” Tor pointed at her.

“True,” Cara said. “So, what do you say? I always wanted to be a brunette.” She flipped a strand of hair at Rolf.

“I guess I can’t disagree,” he said. “But I’ll go for blond myself.”

“We need a drug store,” Amber said.

“There’s one near here a couple blocks away,” Rolf said. “I can go on foot.”

“No, I’ll go.
” Marc jumped to his feet, eyes alight. “Cara’s right. If you’re spotted it can ruin all our plans.”

Rolf eyed him for a minute,
then nodded. “Okay. Just remember to walk slowly and don’t talk to anyone. It’s dangerous out there.”

###

“How do I look?” Cara came upstairs to the salon and twirled to show off her new dark auburn hair.

“Makes you more
serious.” Amber tilted her head to one side.

She walked over to Rolf
, eyeing his now blond, spiked hair. “I think the blond is nice. On the other hand, you’re like a rock star.”

“She’s got a point, Billy Idol,
” Shana said, clamping a hand over her mouth and turning away. Marc lounged beside her on the couch, grinning. 

“Very funny.”
Rolf shrugged into a khaki trench coat and placed a brown fedora on his head. His eyes met Cara’s, and he must have seen the concern she knew shaded her face.

“You mustn’t worry tonight, Cara. I really do know what I’m doing
,” he whispered as he passed her on the way to the door.

She twirled a strand of hair around her index finger
. “I know. But I still get to worry.”

“Don’t wait up.” He
saluted to the group.

“Yeah, right,” she muttered. No matter what he told her, she would be terrified until he returned.

###

Rolf moved
along the sidewalk, keeping his pace slow, his long trench coat wrapped tight around him. The fedora he positioned over his eyes. Cara intruded into his mind, her lovely eyes clouded with worry. She wanted a relationship with him despite their differences, but he had to be strong and try to make the right decision. A moment of pleasure wasn’t worth her death or the guilt torturing him when he outlived her. He had to make her see the truth. Avoiding her had become difficult, though.

P
ainful.

On previous trips to Charleston, this street bustled with activity even into the wee hours of the morning. Now
, only one or two people straggled by, keeping their heads down. He peered into closed shop windows—dark with merchandise from summer still displayed—subtle hints of the Light depletion. The open restaurants were sparsely filled. Paper blew across the street and gathered in damp, gray clumps at the curbs.

A
squeak to his right brought him to a stop. A street person wheeled an old grocery cart down the opposite sidewalk, the
screech, screech
of its wheels an anomaly in the abnormally quiet streets. The old man gazed at his shuffling feet, never acknowledging Rolf.

R
olf raised his head. The sky had cleared and stars sparkled in the inky blackness. The air smelled crisp and clean after the recent downpour. He continued his path, his senses on alert for signs of the Takers.

He reached King Street before he picked up a
ny hint of the tainted energy—a faint, eerie chill, the trail leading to the west. Exactly the direction they thought the Takers would be from Sean’s hacked information. Good, they hadn’t moved.