Mystic Flame (Beyond Ontariese 4) (5 page)

As soon as Trey dar Aune strode into
Vampire Adventures
, Grat knew something big was going down.
Then after the meeting, Dro Tar mentioned Head Master Tal as well,
so Grat figured it was only a matter of time before Malos contacted
him.

“I
can
, but why should I?” Grat
arched his brow as he stared down the Mystic. “We’re on the brink
of something big and I happen to like my partner.”

“Your appearance is ordinary at best. You
have no Mystic abilities. You’re not from one of the six great
houses. You scrounge together a moderate income from your obscene
images, but my guess is you’ve never enjoyed the stability of a
long-term social alliance, much less attracted a life mate.”

Grat tensed, but said nothing. Knowing
Malos, there had been no guessing about it. He would have
thoroughly investigated Grat in preparation for this meeting. Which
meant Malos knew Grat cared about two things, his younger brother
and physical pleasure. The sort of pleasure he could only find in
sexual simulators as things were now.

When there was no reply, Malos went on,
“Each Ontarian woman has a hundred men to choose from. Why would
one ally herself with you?”

“I didn’t realize Mystics dealt in female
flesh.” Why was Malos provoking him if he hoped to strike a deal?
Grat’s pride demanded he punch the smug Mystic in the face and
storm out of the bar, yet curiosity kept him rooted in place.

“My kind,” Malos leaned forward, speaking in
a barely discernable whisper, “are
able
to do many things,
which are forbidden by the Mystic Covenant.”

As if he didn’t already know Malos lacked
the integrity of most Mystics. Their past deals had more than
proven Malos to be an amoral bastard, an extremely generous amoral
bastard. “Go on.”

“By implanting a suggestion—a compulsion if
you will—I could ensure the female of your choice was more
receptive to your advances.”

“How receptive?” Forbidden images flickered
to life within his mind, possibilities he seldom allowed himself to
entertain.

“As receptive as you like.” A knowing smile
parted his lips. “Take your partner for instance. I suspect that
working so closely with such a vivacious female has left you with
certain desires. Perhaps she’s fueled your fantasies.”

Grat licked his lips and looked beyond
Malos, staring at the holodancer. “Would she be aware of what you
were doing?”

“I could introduce a subtle longing and
gradually increase it to the sort of passion that forges lifelong
commitments. She would be so besotted, so needful of your attention
that she would never look at another man.”

Shifting on the chair, Grat adjusted the
crotch of his pants before dragging his gaze back to Malos. “All
right.” Shame momentarily surged through his desire, but cycles of
unrequited lust proved stronger. “I’ll tell you where she went but
you have to assure me she won’t be harmed. If you can’t promise me
that, I want nothing—”

“Oh no.” Malos waved away his response. “I
require much more from you than information. I’m offering you the
fulfillment of your wildest fantasy. Do you honestly think the
price will be so low?”

A long pause followed. Grat looked at the
holodancer again and again, his hands rubbing up and down his
thighs. He’d tried everything to draw Dro Tar’s attention. She
respected him and valued his abilities, but never once had she
looked at him with sexual awareness in her eyes. Why would she?
Malos was right. Women weren’t drawn to intelligence and
technological acumen. They wanted broad shoulders and bad
attitudes.

He stomped down the last of his decency and
asked, “What do you want me to do?”

A slow, cruel smile parted the Mystic’s
lips. “Her current companion can sense if one of our kind comes
near him, which creates certain complications for me.”

“You want
me
to go after them?”

“I know how you met your partner.” Malos
paused, apparently waiting for the implication to hit Grat.

He and Dro Tar had been assigned to several
of the same missions while she was still in the military. He’d been
a civilian consultant able to combine technology with a heightened
sensitivity that allowed him to locate any target. She’d been the
most unconventional military officer he’d ever encountered. Her wit
and rebellion meshed well with his subtle resistance to authority
and he’d felt a connection with her that he’d never felt with any
other female. Unfortunately, his feelings hadn’t been
reciprocated.

“You will find them, retrieve the missing
device and neutralize your partner’s companion.” Malos’ deep voice
drew Grat back to the present. “I will give you a crystal that will
enable you to signal me when you have accomplished these things.
Upon our return, I will condition your partner in the manner I
described.”

“I haven’t utilized those skills in… I swore
I’d never hunt again.” He seldom terminated the targets himself,
but that didn’t mean his conscience was clear. He knew what would
happen each time he identified the location of whomever he’d been
hired to find. The vast majority of his targets had been violent
criminals who had outmaneuvered or eluded the law. Still, he didn’t
like knowing he was partly responsible for ending someone’s life.
“I will not kill.”

“I said neutralize. If you’re too squeamish
to do it right, take him out of commission until another member of
my team can arrive. However, this offer is only valid as long as
the information in the device remains a mystery. If you wait too
long and they work the puzzle, I’ll have no option but to find
another hunter.” Malos shrugged. “The decision is yours.” He folded
his hands on the tabletop and then leaned forward, his expression
suddenly cold. “Wait. I don’t need to find another hunter. I’ve
already engaged one. In fact, he’s shadowing your brother right
now. His orders are to observe at the moment, but I can change that
with a thought.”

“You son of a bitch!” Grat shoved his chair
back so forcefully it slammed against the wall. Frantically
searching in his pocket for his comport, he pulled the slim device
out. “Person to person, Gine Farlay.” Terror eased from his
expression when his brother’s image materialized on screen.

“I’m not even late yet. What’s with you?”
the boy asked with obvious impatience.

“Are you headed home?”

“We were going to tram over to Simworld.
Thought we’d check out your latest offering.”

Grat glanced at Malos, but his expression
remained calm. “Looks like I have to shuttle off-world for a couple
of days. Can you stay with Bendar?”

“Done. Are you going to do hands-on research
for your next sim?” A mixture of laughter and enthusiastic whistles
came across the link.

“Something like that. Behave.” Grat slipped
the comport back into his pocket. “Call off the hunter now.”

“That would be rather foolish.” Malos stood
and smiled, obviously pleased by the outcome of the meeting. “You
have two hours to prepare for the mission. I’ll meet you at your
lab.”

“That is the third person who laughed at the
wording on this shirt,” Evan said as they crossed the casino. “Tell
me what it says.”

Dro Tar grinned and kept right on walking.
“It’s nothing too obscene. Lighten up.” She wheeled her suitcase
behind her like a pet. Lights blinked and musical clanking greeted
them from every direction. Excitement zinged through her
bloodstream. She refused to let her grumpy companion spoil her good
mood.

“We’re trying to be inconspicuous.” He moved
up beside her, his voice hushed and urgent. They spoke in Ontarian,
so the precaution was unnecessary. Why were Mystics always so
uptight? His new outfit accented his athletic build. They must have
one hell of a gym at the Conservatory. He’d tucked the mystery
T-shirt into faded blue jeans and green contacts now altered the
appearance of his eyes. Dressed as an Ontarian Mystic or an
American tourist, Evan was destined to turn heads. “We will
purchase an appropriate shirt before we go any farther.”

“Oh, we will, will we?” She faced him, her
brow raised in challenge. “Go buy another shirt, then. What’s
stopping you?”

He folded his arms across his chest and
glared. His fierce expression only made her want to run her fingers
through his wavy hair and rub against his lean body until they both
purred. The next five days could be interesting.

“You know I have no currency.”

“Lack of planning on your part doesn’t
constitute an emergency on mine.” She shrugged and continued her
trek across the noisy room. His T-shirt read
If you’re happy and
you know it, drop your pants
. She wasn’t sure he’d get the
innuendo even if she told him what it said. “I like the shirt.
Besides I’m not convinced we need to be inconspicuous.”

They passed through a set of double doors
and exited the building. Balmy night wind caressed her face. The
soothing touch was ruined by honking horns and the continual drone
of automobile engines. Manicured gardens and decorative foliage
lined the wide concrete path. A section angled off toward the
multi-level parking garage while the main walkway continued toward
the street.

“Why would we no longer need to be
inconspicuous?” he asked.

“Think about it. Vee’s entire life’s work
revolved around helping Mystics reach their true potential. He
trained the trainers, so to speak. The journal itself is proof that
he intended to share his knowledge with as many as possible. The
Wisdom of the Ages is an über-sophisticated version of Earth’s
Internet. Even if he had some deep, dark secret, why would he have
you transmit it to Lord Drakkin?”

“I agree. Malos’ explanation doesn’t make
sense, but I assure you he was trying to steal the journal.” They
paused at a street corner, waiting for the traffic signal to halt
the sea of taxis, cars and limousines.

“I don’t doubt what you saw.” She shot him a
sidelong glance. “Do you think Tal is incompetent?”

“Of course not.” He sounded insulted, which
was exactly what she’d intended. “I hold Head Master Tal in the
highest regard.”

“I like him too, and I trust Trey with my
life, which is why I think the brothers dar Aune are amusing
themselves at our expense.”

The woman next to Evan nodded toward his
shirt. Her male companion read the slogan and chuckled. Evan
clenched his jaw, not bothering to comment on the exchange. “You
think they’re…”

“Playing matchmaker.” The light changed,
signaling them to cross the street.

“Head Master Tal is unaware of what I sensed
when I touched Malos and the images that erupted in the vortex.
Even if this mission is meant to throw us together, we are still at
risk.”

“If you say so.” She swept her hand toward
the towering structures surrounding them. “Pick a city. Venice,
Paris, Rome, New York?”

He stepped to one side of the sidewalk,
allowing the steady stream of pedestrians to move past them. “Malos
will pursue us. It’s only a matter of how long it takes for him to
determine my destination.”

“Then let’s get the hell out of Dodge. You
can Summon the Storm. Why are we waiting around for him to find
us?”

“My vision brought me here.” He pointed in
the direction they’d just come. “To that hotel. I need to know
why.”

“Then we’re back where we started. Pick a
city.”

He shrugged his broad shoulders and nodded a
short distance down the street. “That one is closest. Was it one of
the three revealed by the Seeker Circle?”

“Nope.” They followed the sidewalk toward
the main entrance of the hotel. “Can you describe anything you saw
in the vortex? I know you said it’s still jumbled.”

“Once we get settled, I’ll share the images
with you.” Her steps faltered and she pretended to struggle with
her suitcase. The last time he’d touched her mind had been at the
beginning of their torrid affair. “Let me take that for you. It
makes me appear rude otherwise.”

She passed the handle to him and turned her
face away. His boyish smile and the innocence they’d both left
behind rolled through her memory. Their joint mission was only
scheduled to last a few weeks, but unexpected complications had
stranded them off-world together for nearly a solar cycle. The
rough equivalent of an Earth year.

“Are you here for the convention?” A perky
female voice intruded on Dro Tar’s melancholy. Evan held the door
open as the busty redhead smiled up at him.

“He doesn’t speak English and he’s with
me.”

“Oh,” she giggled, “I didn’t see you there.”
She shot Evan her best come-hither look and entered the hotel
lobby, melting away into the crowd. Why were there so many people
in the registration area? It was almost nine o’clock.

“What was she talking about? Her expression
was rather provocative.”

“She wanted to know how much you
charge.”

“Charge for what?”

“Sexual favors.” She fought to keep a
straight face. “I told her I’d engaged your services for the next
several days.” His jaw dropped and she laughed. Gods, he was fun to
rattle. She moved to the end of the considerable line, Evan
trailing in her wake.

“Those were not her words.”

“Then why did you ask?”

“If I concentrate on each separate word, I’m
able to comprehend what they say, but it’s tedious.” He paused then
met her gaze. “I would never expect compensation. You realize that,
don’t you?”

“Compensation for what?”

“My sexual favors.”

She choked on her reply as laughter rumbled
in her chest. He’d turned the tables on her. This dour Mystic had
trumped her smartass remark. She looked at Evan with new interest,
her mind calling her back in time. Physical attraction had sparked
between them from the first moment they met. He’d laughed more
often then, been less reserved. She found herself longing for
things she’d sworn never to feel again. They moved through the line
in tense silence, Dro Tar lost in yesteryear.