Forest Whispers (10 page)

His lips flattened into a tight line of
anger. “He is that important to you?”

Lana nodded. “Dying now would be too easy
for him. I want him to stand trial and face the executioner for
what he’s done.”

After a moment, Corin nodded reluctantly in
agreement and reached for her pack. She took her communicator from
it before she handed it to him and instructed Louise to use the
ship’s flood lights to guide them to the clearing since it was
already nearly dark and she knew it would be fully dark before they
could reach the landing area.

Shoving the communicator into her belt, she
limped toward Corin and Sadin. Corin picked up the detached limb,
stuck the bloodied thing in his pack and hefted Sadin onto his
shoulder. With an effort, Lana leaned over to pick up Corin’s
trident. “Leave it … or use it to help you keep your balance.”

Lana studied the trident once she’d lifted
it from the ground. It was surprisingly lightweight. Ignoring the
blood dripping from the blade, she used it as a staff to help her
walk as they set out toward the landing area.

Corin was determined to match her pace,
which wasn’t much more than a slow shuffle. As anxious as she was
to get medical attention for Sadin, though, she knew she was going
to pass out if she tried to move any faster. Every step was agony,
and the trip seemed to take forever, but she found as they neared
the spot Corin had described that reluctance began to gain the
upper hand.

When they reached the clearing and Louise
landed, opening the hatch and extending the gangplank, she urged
Corin ahead, watching as he disappeared inside with Sadin. He
reappeared at the top of the gangplank as she reached it. Striding
toward her, he took the trident from her hand and dropped it to the
ground then scooped her into his arms and strode up the gangplank
with her.

Sadin was already in the examination tube
when they reached sickbay. Instead of setting her on her feet,
Corin moved to the gurney beside the examination tube and lowered
her carefully onto the padded top. Grateful, Lana lay back, closing
her eyes for several moments while she tried to regulate her
breathing to a less painful struggle. Finally, she turned her head
to look over at Sadin. “Where’s his arm?”

Corin shrugged. “He has no need for it. I
will take it to Rex Pimetrius as proof that the killer has been
dealt with.”

Horrified, Lana glanced up at him sharply.
Every instinct screamed a protest, but none found their way to her
lips. Corin was taking a grave risk as it was in allowing her to
remove the prisoner without protest. Unless he had something that
might convince Rex Pimetrius that he had indeed dealt with the
killer, there was no telling what sort of punishment he might be
facing himself.

“
Do you think that will convince
him?”

Corin shrugged. “His head would be
better.”

“
He’d have a little trouble breathing
without it,” Lana said dryly.

“
The arm will have to do. Rex
Pimetrius trusts me. If I tell him the killer has been dealt with,
he will accept that it is so.”

Lana swallowed with an effort. “You’re not
just telling me that to keep me from worrying about your hide, are
you?”

Something flickered in his eyes. “Would you
worry, Lana?” he asked quietly.

A hard knot swelled in her throat. It took
an effort to swallow past it. “Yes, I would worry.”

He laid one palm along her cheek and leaned
down, fitting his mouth to hers and kissing her lightly. Then, as
if he couldn’t resist, he opened his mouth over hers and kissed her
deeply, lingeringly. When he broke the kiss, he studied her for a
long moment before he drew away. “Do not worry for me, Lana. All
will be well.”

Lana nodded, struggling against the
tightness in her chest that had nothing to do with her injury.
“Promise?”

“
I give you my word.”

Again, she nodded. Doubt still teased at
her, but she saw confidence in his expression and knew he believed
he told her the truth. “It has been … the greatest honor to work
with you, Captain Thantos.”

He smiled faintly. “It has been an
honor and a privilege to work with you, Ranger Eloy.
Anhana hoy
,” he murmured. Stepping
away from the gurney, he turned and strode toward the
door.

“
What does that mean?” Lana asked as
he reached it.

He stopped. Turning to look at her, he
smiled faintly. “Until we meet again.”

Lana swallowed with an effort.
“
Anhana hoy
,
Corin.”

His eyes gleamed, his smile growing more
pronounced. Without another word, he nodded, stepped through the
doorway, and disappeared.

Lana lay back, dropping an arm across her
eyes. “Set a course for Earth, Louise.”

Epilogue

Ten months later

It was usually bad news when Director
Mallory called her to his office. Lana had been wracking her brain
since she’d gotten the summons, though, and she couldn’t for the
life of her think of anything she’d done lately to be called on the
carpet for. She hadn’t even been in port twenty four hours. She’d
just successfully concluded the case she’d been working on.

She’d been tempted to head down to the
canteen for a little R&R, but she’d refrained—even if she’d
gone, she was off duty at the moment and had every right to go.

She dismissed the speculation as she reached
the director’s office and tapped on his door.

“
Come.”

Stepping into the room, she moved toward the
director’s desk and stood at attention. “You wanted to speak to me,
sir?”

Mallory gestured toward the chair facing his
desk. “Have a seat, Eloy.”

“
I’d as soon stand,” she
responded.

Mallory, always short tempered, frowned.
“Sit down, Eloy. I’d just as soon not strain my neck looking up at
you.”

Her lips tightened, but she took the
seat.

“
How long have you been working
without a partner?”

Lana’s gut clenched. She knew damned well he
knew exactly how long she’d been working alone. “Since Patrick
Neilson was killed, sir.”

He nodded. “I’m going to assign you a new
partner. He’s a rookie, so you’ll have to show him the ropes, but
he’s not without experience.”

“
I don’t need a partner,” Lana said
sharply. “I work best alone.”

Mallory slammed his fist against his desk.
“Did I ask you if you wanted a damned partner, Eloy?”

Lana ground her teeth, jumping to her feet
and slamming her palms down on the front of his desk. “I don’t have
time to break in a rookie!”

“
Make time!” he roared at her. “He’s a
good man and we’re damned proud to have him!”

He punched the com unit on his desk. “Send
the rookie in, Connie.”

Lana pushed away from his desk and flung
herself into the chair once more, glaring at Mallory as she heard
the door open behind her and the light tread of feet crossing the
room. A dark shadow fell over her.

“
You’ve worked with him before, Eloy,”
Mallory growled. “Meet your new partner, Ranger Corin
Thantos.”

Lana’s head snapped around so fast she
almost got whiplash. She gaped up at the man standing beside her
chair, staring stupidly at the hand he held out to her. After a
moment, feeling as if she was caught up in a bizarre dream, she
rose and extended her hand. “Ranger?” she managed to say after a
moment.

He shook her hand, smiling faintly. “It’s a
pleasure to be working with you again, Ranger Eloy.”

Lana was still staring up at him,
dumbfounded when Mallory slammed a folder down on his desk.
“Something’s up in sector MHJ541. I want you two to check it out
for me.”

Lana stared down at the magnetic folder
blankly for several moments and finally picked it up. “When do you
want us to leave?”

He stared at her in surprise for a moment
and finally frowned. “The ship’s prepped to go—yesterday would be
good,” he muttered, waving them off as if they were a pair of pesky
insects.

Nodding, Lana scooped the electronic ‘paper’
from the desk and left the room. Corin fell into step beside her as
she strode down the corridor toward the station’s landing bay.
Still in shock, she glanced at him a couple of times, half fearing
her mind was playing tricks on her.

It seemed strange to see him without war
paint, wearing the uniform of a ranger. He almost seemed like
someone else entirely.

As hard as she’d tried to oust him from her
mind since she’d left Ata Prime, she only managed to keep her
memories at bay for short periods of time. She’d missed him, far
worse that she would ever have imagined. “You left Rex Pimetrius’
service?” she managed finally.

“
He graciously granted me release to
represent Ata Prime in the ranger program. We are required as
members of the confederation to donate manpower to
patrol.”

Lana frowned. “I know that, but … he hasn’t.
I mean, he refused before.”

“
When I expressed an interest, he saw
the merit in complying with the request.”

Lana shook her head, falling silent. It was
just too much to take in at once. Her mind felt strangely
blank.

When they’d reached the ship and boarded,
she ordered the hatch sealed and the gang plank retracted before
she turned to Corin. He caught her even as she turned, sandwiching
her between the bulkhead and his body. His mouth, as it covered
hers, shattered the little wit that remained to her, flooding her
with heated longing.

She felt weak all over when he pulled away
from her at last. She had to lock her knees to keep from sinking to
the floor in a puddle. “You … wanted to be a ranger?” she asked in
confusion.

His eyes gleamed with both amusement and
desire as he stared down at her. “I wanted a ranger. If I must be a
ranger to be with you, then so be it.”

The End

Also Available from NCP by Kaitlyn O’Connor
…

Cyberevolution I: The Awakening

Cyberevolution II: Total Recall

Cyberevolution III: Abiogenesis

Cyberevolution IV: Cyborg

Cyberevolution V: Illumination

Cyberevolution VI: Cyborg Nation

Cyberevolution VII: Rules of Engagement

Enslaved One: Genesis

Enslaved Two: The Spawning

Enslaved Three: The Gladiators

Beastmen of Ator: Alien Abduction

When Dawn Breaks

When Night Falls

Adaptation

Alien Breeders II: Deep Penetration

Assassin’s Blade

Babylon: Rebel’s Woman/Armageddon

Barbarian Prince (not available yet)

Below

Breeder Project

Chaos Forged

Claiming, the

Conquest Earth

Dark Abyss

Dark Solstice

Discovery: The Forgotten

Dragon Lord

Exiled

Gate, The

Guardian of the Storm

Ja-rael’s Lioness

Lawgivers: Gabriel

Lion’s Woman, The

Lords of Mayhem

Night Raven

Ninth Orb, The

Portal, The

Real Man, A

Return to Eden (not available yet)

Sleeping with the Enemy

Tears of the Dragon

Twilight’s End

Wrong Number—free

By

Chapter One

An ambiguous mixture of emotions ran along
the periphery of Raina Willows’ mind as she carefully polished a
three foot segment of the dark mahogany balustrade. Narrowing her
eyes, she studied the section critically. The light powdering of
dust she’d been stirring around, she saw, had collected in a groove
on the bottom side of the railing. Settling her rump on one of the
stairs, she speared the polishing cloth with the nail on her index
finger and ran it back and forth along the decorative furrow until
she’d removed the pale line and then focused on the intricate
carving that supported the balustrade.

It was archaic, Raina decided, but she still
wasn’t altogether certain of how she felt about it. Vaguely
resentful, she supposed, maybe a little threatened.

Threatened might be a little strong, she
amended, lifting her head briefly to flick a gaze around the vast
foyer of the mansion, but something like that.

From the moment she’d first seen the place,
from the outside, the fanciful notion had swept over her that she
was walking onto a movie set for a filming of a vampire flick or a
ghost story. The gothic mansion and its setting had the sort of
theatrical feel to it that gave her a mild case of the willies even
before she’d set foot inside, and the interior of the place was
even more gothic--heavy crushed velvet draperies on all of the tall
windows, heavily carved furniture, dark mahogany moldings
everywhere.

She wasn’t sure why she’d worked so hard to
get the job.

Aside from the fact that she desperately
needed work, that is.

Cleaning lady wasn’t exactly the sort of
thing one could put on a resume to get a leg up in today’s world.
She’d gone after the job because she’d thought it would be a cinch
to get it and she’d been beat out by the competition on every other
job she’d tried for over the past couple of months. Immediate needs
had finally overrode the desirability of career building.

She’d felt like a peon, though, from the
first moment she’d been interviewed, and that, at least, was no
exaggeration. The housekeeper had looked like a character out of an
old horror/vampire flick, not quite medieval but damned close in
her severe, mid-calf length black dress, her gray hair slicked back
and knotted at the back of her head in a style that looked like
something out of the eighteen hundreds.