Seduced by the Night (26 page)

Now, with the hour getting late, Julia worked her way systematically around a relatively fresh mountain of trash, concerned that the sun might not stay up long enough for her to finish. She also worried about what was happening at the mansion. By now, they had to be wondering where she was.

As the smell of the garbage grew stronger, she pulled her small perfume atomizer from her pocket and sprayed herself, hoping it was strong enough to mask some of the more offensive odors clinging to her.

The sun's dying rays cast an orange glow across the landscape, throwing one side of the large pile into shadow. She walked to the far side and stood with her back to the sun, so she could see, and began to pick through the debris.

Soon lost in thought, a flicker of movement off to the side startled her. She froze in place and waited. She had just decided that it had been a figment of her imagination when it came again.

Apprehension shot through her. Though she had yet to see any, it wasn't inconceivable for there to be dogs or even rats digging through the pile, she told herself. The problem was that, in all likelihood, the animal was a stray and potentially dangerous.

Hoping to avoid it, she inched her way around the pile. Unfortunately, the animal moved with her, almost as if it were tracking her. She froze once more and it moved into view, sniffing through the pile. In the dim light, it was hard to see exactly what type of animal it was.

The hair was cut so short that the creature appeared furless, although there seemed to be tufts of hair running down its back. As she strained to get a better look at it, the animal raised its head and saw her.

Its eyes glowed red and Julia was positive that she saw long, sharp teeth protruding from its mouth. Suddenly she was very afraid. No one knew she was out here and she'd left her cell phone in the car.

Moving slowly, she backed down the heap of garbage and had just reached the bottom when she heard the growl. In a desperate attempt to save herself, she raced toward her car. She'd taken only a couple of steps when her luck ran out.

Dirk woke up in a foul mood. He'd been played with and he didn't like it. The old Dirk wouldn't have minded so much. He might even have taken advantage of the situation by enjoying the woman until he got tired of her and then sending her back to her
fiance
when he was done. For some reason, he found that hard to do with Bethany. From the first moment he'd seen her, she'd affected him strangely.

He now realized that what had been between them was purely physical, nothing more. And now, even that was gone. He steeled himself against an overwhelming sense of loss, refusing to let it affect him. He still had a job to do and he'd be damned if he'd let this get in the way. He would guard Bethany with his life. Still, as long as she was at the mansion, she was safe. In the six months they'd been hunting Harris and Patterson, the two Primes had never dared attack the mansion. To do so would be suicidal and the former
SEALs
knew better.

Dirk sighed. Despite his reluctance to get out of bed, a sense of urgency plagued him until he could no longer ignore it. Getting out of bed, he dressed quickly and headed downstairs.

Mac was in the living room, his arms wrapped around
Lanie
who was clearly upset. Admiral Winslow was also there, pacing back and forth, looking grim. One look at Mac's face and Dirk knew the sense of urgency he'd felt had come through the psychic link the two men shared.

"We have to find Gem,"
Lanie
pleaded with Mac.

"I know, baby, we will. I promise." He looked around and saw Dirk and, for a moment, his expression relaxed. "Dirk and I will go out and find her, but you have to promise me you'll stay here."

Dirk looked from Mac to the admiral, and then back again. "What's going on?"

"Gem's disappeared," the admiral said.

Dirk couldn't help glancing around the room and noticed for the first time that the small
chupacabra
wasn't lurking nearby as it usually was. "Well, she can't have gone far. The sun only set about an hour ago," he reasoned. "Maybe she's outside."

Lanie
was shaking her head before he finished. "I spent the entire day looking for her—I've combed every inch of this place, inside and out. She's not here."

"Why didn't you come wake me," Mac quietly chided his wife.

"You needed your sleep. Besides, I thought I'd find her. I mean, she's so small, where could she go?" Her voice broke over this last part and she fell silent.

"Maybe Julia found her and put her someplace," Dirk suggested.

"That's the other problem," Mac said, his tone accusing. "Julia left earlier today and never came back. She hasn't called either."

The admiral stopped pacing in order to face Mac. Dirk saw the lines of worry etched in his face and the rigid way in which he held himself. "Young man, I hope you're not suggesting that Julia had something to do with Gem's disappearance."

"That is exactly what I'm suggesting," Mac countered, moving
Lanie
behind him so he could square off with the admiral.

Dirk thought it was an indication of just how upset the two men were that they were so close to blows. He was about to step between them when the sound of the front door opening caught his attention.

Dirk spun around as the newcomer appeared, catching a whiff of something foul. Julia stood there, wearing a one-piece jumpsuit that was so filthy, Dirk had no idea what color it-had once been. Her hair was a wild mass on top of her head and her face was streaked with mud.

Admiral
Winskow
took a step toward her, but then stopped, no doubt driven back by the odor. "Julia, what in God's name…"

"I'm sorry," she said. "I made a mistake today. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I didn't want you to fire me before I had a chance to make things right."

The admiral looked as confused as Dirk felt. "What are you talking about?"

"The statue."

The mere mention of the word caused the tension in the room to escalate.

"What do you know about the statue?" Mac's tone was deadly serious.

Julia looked as if she wanted to run away, but Dirk gave her credit for having the courage to remain where she was. "I know what happened to it." She turned to look at
Lanie
. "I'm so sorry. When you asked me earlier where it was, I lied."

Lanie
gasped but Julia hurried on before anyone could interrupt. "You see, I came in this morning and found the statue in the wastebasket." She turned to the admiral. "After our talk yesterday, you said you'd take care of it. I thought that had been your solution—to throw it away. Especially after I read your note."

"My note?"

All eyes turned to the admiral and for a second he looked confused, then he sighed and nodded his head. "I was late for my breakfast meeting downtown. I was going through my mail to make sure there was nothing there I needed when I noticed a package from an old friend. I opened it and found several small bottles of syrup, one of which had broken. I threw it in the trash and left Julia a note to dispose of it."

Lanie
turned then to Mac, her expression hopeful. "She's probably out in the trash canister. Would you go check?"

"Of course." He squeezed her hand and started for the door when the admiral cleared his throat.

"She won't be there," the admiral said tightly. "Today is collection day."

Julia peered at
Lanie
with a resigned expression on her face. "When you asked about the statue, I realized I had  made a mistake, but by then, it was too late to correct it. The trash had already been collected."

"We need to find out where they dumped the trash,"
Lanie
said, clearly distressed. "Maybe she'll still be there."

"I'll take care of it." Mac looked at Dirk, who nodded that he was ready to help search for the small creature.

"I wanted to help—" Julia began, but Mac cut her off, his tone cold, bordering on cruel.

"I think you've done enough already."

He turned to go, but with almost changeling speed, the admiral crossed the room and gripped Mac's arm in a
viselike
grip, spinning him around.

Mac's eyes flared a bright red and Dirk saw him fight to control his reaction, out of respect for the older man. For several seconds, they glared at each other. Dirk edged closer, wondering if he was going to have to break up a fight, then Mac heaved a sigh, releasing his anger. He turned to face Julia, who still hadn't moved from where she stood half inside the living room. "I'm sorry. I was out of line."

"No," she replied. "You have every right to be upset. All I wanted to say is that you don't have to go anywhere." She ducked out of view for a moment and when she came back, she was holding the baby
chupacabra
in her arms.

Lanie
squealed with delight and ran to the creature. Gem emitted a noise somewhere between a bark and a growl, which Dirk assumed meant she was excited. She leaped into
Lanie's
arms and almost knocked her over.

Dirk watched the happy reunion, wondering when everyone would realize that there was now one more person who knew their secret—or at least part of their secret.

It didn't take long. With Gem cradled against her side like a baby,
Lanie
stared at Julia in amazement. "How?" It seemed all she was capable of asking.

Julia smiled. "It wasn't that hard. I called the city to find out where the trash is dumped. That's where I've been all afternoon."

"But you were looking for a statue,"
Lanie
pointed out. "When did you realize that Gem really isn't a statue?"

"Right after the sun went down and I thought she was going to rip out my throat."

The admiral went to her. "Are you all right? You're not hurt, are you?"

"No, I'm fine," she replied, looking at the admiral with a mixture of hope and longing that made Dirk wonder if the admiral realized just how much she cared for him. "I admit, I thought I was dead when she knocked me over and went for my throat."

Everyone in the room gasped in alarm, but Julia remained calm. She reached into the upper pocket of her coveralls and pulled out a mint, like the ones she kept on her desk, and held it out to the baby
chupacabra
, who snatched it from her hand and began licking it. "It turned out that she wasn't going for my throat after all. Once I realized I wasn't about to die, I had a chance to study her. That's when I noticed the similarity to the statue."