Mystic Flame (Beyond Ontariese 4) (11 page)

With a soft chuckle he pulled back, nearly
out of her. “I guess that is all I required.” He drove forward, his
balls lightly slapping her behind. “I am inside you, aren’t I?” She
tightened her inner muscles in silent agreement, too overwhelmed to
speak. Full, complete, she bit her bottom lip to keep from crying
out. She had needed him for so long. “Wrap your legs around me.”
His voice broke with tension and emotion, revealing the depth of
his response.

She locked her legs around his waist and he
scooped her up against his chest, climbing out of the spa. Each
movement drove his shaft deeper, accented the fabulous pressure.
She clutched his back with her arms and legs, clinging to him as he
crossed the room.

He placed her sideways across the bed and
knelt between her thighs, somehow managing to remain inside her.
His mouth found hers as he drew his hips back then his tongue
surged past her lips with his next inward stroke. She unhooked her
ankles and drew her legs up high against his sides, allowing him a
greater range of motion. Interlacing their fingers, he pressed her
hands to the bed and aggressively renewed his claim.

Each deep thrust rocked her, sending
sensations ricocheting out of control. She returned his demanding
kiss, intrigued by the taste of her own passion. Why had she been
so stubborn? Why had they waited so long? She caressed his shaft
with firm, rhythmic squeezes and saturated his mind with
affection.

His fingers tightened around hers and his
hips sped. She arched and twisted as the intensity soared.

“Now!” he commanded against her parted lips,
and her body immediately obeyed. The distinct pulsations of her
passage echoed his shuddering release. They trembled and moaned,
lost in the sensual storm.

After a relaxing shower, they dressed in
matching bathrobes and returned to the suite’s main room. Evan
brushed his lips over hers then focused on the journal entries. Dro
Tar sat in one of the upholstered chairs, watching him work. Echoes
of their passion reverberated through her senses. Every touch,
every fiery kiss was emblazoned on her mind. There was something
magical about their lovemaking, almost indefinable. Raw power and
tenderness, overwhelming pleasure and subtle intimacy, somehow she
felt all that and more.

A dreamy smile curved the corners of her
mouth as she studied Evan’s profile. There had to be something she
could do to help. Passivity was not in her nature.

“Why don’t you turn on an entertainment vid
or something,” he suggested without looking up from the small
screen. He must have sensed her surge of restlessness. “I can tune
out the sound.”

“Even if I turn on an adult movie?”

He chuckled, but his gaze remained fixed on
the journal.

“I’m starving.” She crossed her legs and
wiggled back into the chair’s deep cushions. “Mind-blowing sex
might charge your batteries, but it makes me hungry.”

“Have something delivered to the room.” He
glanced up, his expression suddenly fierce. “You’re not going
anywhere without me.”

Her initial spike of annoyance melted
beneath the smoldering protectiveness in his gaze. They were going
to have to lay down some ground rules. She’d been independent for a
very long time. “I thought you said you’d sense it if we have
visitors.”

“I’ll sense any Mystic who enters the city,
but Ontarians aren’t the only race capable of interdimensional
travel.” He made a bland gesture toward the table. “If you let me
concentrate for a little while, we’ll go downstairs and purchase
something for you to eat.”

His unintentional innuendo sent heat curling
through her body. She pictured herself on her knees between his
widespread thighs as he thrust into her mouth. “Maybe what I want
to eat is sitting right over there.”

“Am I going to have to bind you to that
chair and gag you?” Though he threw his hands up in exasperation,
his tone was playful.

“The binding part could be fun, but gagging
me would be a tragic waste of a willing mouth.”

“Come here.”

Dro Tar’s nipples tingled and she licked her
lips as heat settled between her thighs. “I thought you’d never
ask.” She stood and crossed the room. Her bathrobe gaped, revealing
the upper swell of her breasts.

Evan pulled her onto his lap and paused for
a slow, deep kiss. “If you help me figure this out, you can have my
undivided attention.” With one arm wrapped loosely around her
waist, he motioned toward the display. “You were with Vee during
his two most recent visits to Earth. Did anything happen on either
of those missions that wasn’t reported to the Joint High
Council?”

Surrendering to his single-mindedness, she
thought back over the missions. “Vee was hurt badly the first time
around. I don’t think he ever made it off Trey’s ship.”

“And the second?” A firm rap on the door
postponed her answer. She scrambled off his lap and headed for the
closet while he stood and adjusted his bathrobe.

“I didn’t order room service. Wait until I
get my pistol.”

He smiled and cocked one eyebrow. “Do you
always shoot uninvited guests?” Crossing to the door, he gazed
through the peephole and said in English, “May I help you?”

She moved up behind him as the intruder
explained, “We had a call from the people occupying the room
directly below yours. Water is leaking through the ceiling. I need
to check your amenities.”

“One moment.” Evan turned to her and
switched back to Ontarian. “He’s alone and wearing a uniform. We
were rather—careless in the spa.”

Tucking her weapon into the pocket of her
bathrobe, she hesitated another moment. “Something isn’t right. He
said amenities. What sort of maintenance worker checks
amenities?”

“Shall I send him away?”

She grinned. “I’d rather shoot him.”

Evan unlocked the door and allowed the
employee into the room.

“I am sorry about the interruption.” He
tugged on the bill of his baseball cap as he passed Dro Tar. There
was nothing suspicious about his manner or dress, but she watched
him closely, her instincts refusing to quiet. He knelt at one end
of the spa and set his tool kit beside him. “I will finish as
quickly as possible.” He spoke with precise care as if he was
choosing each individual word. After sliding the small access panel
to the side, he reached for his tool kit.

His features subtly fluctuated, confirming
her suspicion. He was wearing a holomask. She charged the intruder,
kicking him squarely in the chest and shoving his tool kit out of
reach. The man rolled and sprang to his feet as she landed hard on
her hip.

Evan grabbed him from behind. The intruder
neatly flipped Evan over his shoulder and lunged for his tool kit
again. Dro Tar dove, grasping one of the man’s ankles before he
could escape. Evan dragged the imposter to his knees and slung him
into the chair Dro Tar had occupied a short time before. A hazy
film materialized, covering the man from neck to knees,
immobilizing him.

Rubbing her bruised hip, Dro Tar moved
behind the chair and deactivated the holomask. The image flickered
then dissolved, revealing Grat Farlay’s face. A silver band
encircled his head and a small projector hung from the strap around
his neck.

“I don’t believe this,” she sneered. Anger
kicked through the momentary shock and she rounded the chair. “You
son of a bitch.”

“Who is he?” Evan stepped up beside her.

“My soon-to-be ex-partner.” She kicked the
chair, jarring Grat’s head backward. “I suppose beating the shit
out of you would be pointless, but it would sure as hell make me
feel better. I thought you were retired. How did the Mystics find
you?”

“They followed Tal to you.” His eyes blazed
with defiance despite his helplessness. “They have a hunter
tracking Gine. What was I supposed to do?”

His unrepentant tone only infuriated her
more. She thought of Grat like a brother. Knowing he had betrayed
her to protect his real family was small consolation. She crossed
her arms over her chest and looked at Evan. “He couldn’t have
gotten here without a Mystic. Why didn’t your alarm go off?”

“I don’t know.” His gaze narrowed and Grat
began to squirm. “The web will constrict until I disperse it, so I
suggest you answer quickly. Who sent you?”

“You know damn well who sent me. Why does
Malos want you dead bad enough to threaten my brother?” Grat
countered.

Evan made no perceptible movement, but the
web stabilized. “How did you find me?”

“That’s what I do.” Grat sounded more
annoyed than frightened.

Dro Tar opened his tool kit and snorted.
“He’s got all sorts of goodies in here, Mystic energy scanner,
audio magnifier, thermo-sensors and a variety of weapons.”

“What were your exact objectives?” Evan
asked.

Grat glared at him. “Locate my wayward
partner, retrieve the journal and neutralize you.”

Turning from the tool kit, she headed back
toward Evan. Grat jerked his head to the side and bit down hard on
a small object in his mouth. Recognition popped right along with
the capsule. Dro Tar dove, knocking Grat, chair and all, over onto
his side. She scuttled backward like a crab, avoiding the poisonous
cloud Grat exhaled.

Evan leapt over the toppled chair and formed
a protective shield around them. “Will the vapor kill him?” he
asked as Grat began to cough.

“Unfortunately not. The user injects himself
with an antitoxin in case he needs to use the capsule.”

“Gine… I must…” His voice was barely
understandable, and tears flowed freely from his rapidly swelling
eyes, “signal within three days.”

Despite her anger, fear gave her heart a
mighty squeeze. “Something’s wrong. The puff shouldn’t have harmed
him.”

“I can’t disperse the shield until the vapor
clears.”

“And I can’t stand here and watch him
die.”

Evan hesitated for a moment. The creature
writhing on the carpet didn’t deserve Dro Tar’s pity. “I’ll see
what I can do.” He stepped through the shield and heard a yelp as
she attempted to follow. Drawing energy into the center of his
chest with singular concentration, he sent a cleansing pulse across
the room. He inhaled hesitantly, scanning the air as it passed over
his olfactory receptors.

“I’m not amused,” Dro Tar grumbled. “Let me
out.”

Satisfied that the vapor was neutralized, he
dissolved the shield surrounding her and she rushed to his side. He
released Grat from the webbing and studied his ashen face. The
man’s breathing was shallow and fast, his lips rapidly turning
blue.

“Why didn’t you take the antitoxin?” She
knelt beside her business partner, anger and compassion equally
apparent in her expressive eyes.

“Didn’t think it’d come to this.” His chest
rattled and he moaned. “With me gone…no reason to hurt Gine.”

Evan wasn’t convinced. Gine created a
connection between Malos and Grat. It was more likely Malos would
dispose of a possible danger than turn the boy loose. Luckily, Dro
Tar’s attention was focused entirely on Grat.

“You stupid jerk. Why didn’t you…” She took
his hand and tears escaped with the sweep of her long lashes. His
final breath released in a sustained sigh. She reached over and
closed his eyes, shaking her head in silent denial. Evan stood
behind her, his hands resting lightly on her shoulders. “If he’d
really wanted to kill you, you’d be dead. He was just going through
the motions.”

He tried to find comfort in her assurance,
but Grat’s determination had certainly seemed real. “We need to
find his brother and make sure he’s protected.”

She nodded. “Grat said he had to signal
Malos within three days. That gives us two and a half to find
Gine.” She pushed to her feet and turned to face him. “Malos is
going to pay. He’s going to pay for trying to hurt you and he’s
going to pay for using Grat as his weapon. We have to figure out
what he’s trying to hide.”

“I think our holiday will have to wait.” He
wiped her tears away with his thumbs then caressed her cheek with
the back of his knuckles. “We need to speak with Lord Drakkin.”

“I agree. As soon as Malos realizes Grat
failed, he’ll send someone more committed to the task.” She nodded
toward the bedroom and the utility room beyond. “I’m going to go
wash my face and get dressed. Can Grat be gone when I get
back?”

“I’ll take care of it.”

As soon as she closed the door, he sent a
dispersal pulse into Grat’s body. The corpse exploded in a burst of
ash. Evan trapped the particles with dispassionate precision and
disposed of the entire mass with a powerful cleansing pulse. Dro
Tar obviously had feelings for this male, but Evan knew him only as
a threat.

He gathered his clothing and went into the
bedroom. After donning the rumpled garments, he began collecting
their belongings.

Dro Tar rushed out of the utility room,
still pulling on her shirt. “Sat! Vee said he could eliminate sat
from his vocabulary.”

“Does that have some significance?”

“It’s a military code word. Why would Vee
use military code?”

“It’s not an abbreviation for
satisfactory?”

“It can be, but it’s also used to indicate
that a message is being transmitted under duress.” Her cheeks
glowed with a rosy flush as she looked around the room with obvious
excitement. “Where is the blasted thing?”

He pulled the journal from his pocket and
activated the display. Finding the last entry, he read, “After
tomorrow, I will be able to erase sat from my vocabulary. Such a
simple change, yet the ramifications will be staggering.”

“Right after that, he talked about sending a
message to Drakkin. It must have distracted me before. This has to
be it. Search for the word sat.”

Evan motioned toward the closet. “Continue
packing while I run the search. I want to leave for Bilarri
immediately.”