Cross Waves, page 24
“Yes.” Nate nodded, or was it a medic? Something stung her arm. Nate didn’t know how to give shots, did he? “Let’s get you to a hospital.”
“Wait.” Had someone siphoned the oxygen in the car? She could still feel hands around her neck where Senator Torra strangled her. She had to warn them. “Cynthia Torra. Beware. A beacon. She’s a…a…” What did she need to warn them of? Senator Torra. Senator Torra came for her. He would not rest until he’d squeezed the life from her.
“It’s okay. You’re gonna be okay. Sleep now. Easy does it. Go to sleep.”
The moment Geneva rejected the portal, and he returned to his body, Rolf braced himself for injury. Every hacker heard the stories over the years. Careless hackers sent back to their bodies who got caught in the cross waves of the brain’s magnetic field and absorbed into the target’s mind. Those who survived told horrible tales of missing body parts and endless agony.
Despite their descriptions, even he couldn’t fathom the jarring impact of his return until it was upon him. Pain radiated from the top of his forehead to his toes. He forced himself to wiggle them to make sure they were still connected to his body. They moved, so he had to believe they were.
Rolf lay on the dark factory floor and contemplated death. Death was better than this relentless pain. It pummeled his body like ocean waves in a storm. Cold, piercing, endless. It stripped his mind of every thought save one: Geneva. Had she survived? Why had she condemned him to endless waves of torment?
The illusion had worked. He’d taken Senator Torra by surprise. He’d been about to teach the bastard a lesson he’d never forget. But he’d made the mistake of looking at Geneva. He’d not bothered to mask his feelings. She needed to know who he was—a man capable of exacting revenge on any who would dare threaten the woman he loved.
She’d seen him, and she’d rejected him. She’d chosen to push him from her mind, knowing the torment he’d suffer. She’d chosen to condemn him to endless hours of agony, writhing on the floor where rats scurried back and forth in the darkness. She’d chosen to prevent him from murdering the son of a bitch who would have snapped her windpipe if Rolf hadn’t intervened.
Even as he cursed her actions, he loved her. Loved the light of her goodness that refused to allow the monster inside him to surface. Loved how she protected him, despite knowing she’d also suffer and risk losing her own life. He loved her, but he’d strangle her the next time he saw her for putting them both through this agony. If they survived, he’d strangle her for not trusting him enough to control the dark side of his nature. He’d strangle her, and he’d love her for the rest of their lives together.
His breathing slowed. His heartbeat steadied. His hands clenched and unclenched against the hard floor, then relaxed. Crippling pain coursed through his body, retreated and disappeared. His mind cleared and reached for Geneva. Nothing. Had Cynthia found her? Worry nagged at his self-control. Darkness stirred on the psychic plane. Someone was in the building. More than one person. And they were coming closer. He sat and rose in a single motion. He needed to beat a quick exit. Now was the time to walk through walls. His foot hit against a solid object. Shit.
He crouched, his hands landing on his cell phone and a hard shape—a body. He used the flashlight on the phone to take a closer look, but he knew who it would be. Kaitlyn Girard. Dead. He knew it but went through the motions of checking, feeling for a pulse in her neck, where there was none. Shit, shit, shit. Kaitlyn had gotten caught in the cross waves during his sudden exit. There hadn’t been time to warn her. His fault. But he hadn’t anticipated Geneva would break their connection.
He had to get out of here. The CMU would never believe her death had been an accident. And who could blame them? He rose and connected with a hard metal object. Stars exploded behind his eyelids.
Rolf regained consciousness to find himself in a bed in what he suspected was a dark hospital room. His throat was dryer than a desert. He raised a hand to scratch his nose. Or at least he tried to raise a hand. He couldn’t lift a finger. Neither could he move any other part of his body. Last thing he remembered, he’d connected with a hard object. Did the Ericksen brothers find him? Had he injured his spinal cord?
A voice spoke. “Don’t bother struggling. You won’t be able to move until I let you. You’ll need your strength.”
Rolf couldn’t turn his head to see who spoke, so he stared at the dark ceiling. He’d be damned if he’d answer any questions to some disembodied voice while he lay paralyzed and strapped to a lousy hospital bed. He cleared his throat and licked his lips with what little moisture remained in his mouth. God, if he wasn’t so angry, he’d beg for water. “You have me at a disadvantage. Who are you?”
The voice came closer, the tone smooth and melodic. “My apologies. My name is Caleb Stone. I’m employed by the CMU. I handle the dark ones. Let me give you a piece of advice. This will go much easier for you if you cooperate.”
“If you’re from the CMU, why haven’t you killed me? The CMU’s mode of operation is not to question hackers they think have gone rogue.”
“Ah, you get right to the heart of the matter. I like that. And apparently, your brain’s still working, which is more than I can say for the rest of you. This may take a while. Let me pull up a chair.”
There was a scrape of metal against the hard floor, and a bedside light flicked on, and Rolf stared into dark-blue eyes as frigid as an iceberg. Fear raced along Rolf’s nerve endings, screaming for him to distance himself, screaming danger. He’d never been one to shy away from a threat, though.
Caleb Stone’s face was blunt like an ax, and his nose as sharp as it was long. His lip curled in an Elvis Presley semi-smile. In an instant, Rolf knew Caleb Stone enjoyed his job, whatever the hell he did to handle dark masters. Rolf wasn’t aware there were all that many running around for Caleb Stone to have much work to do.
Caleb Stone smiled, or did he sneer? Rolf wasn’t certain.
“Let me be clear with you. Geneva Erickson claims you rescued her from Senator Torra, who hacked into her mind and attempted to kill her. There’s evidence of strangulation to indicate someone did harm Ms. Ericksen. However, the perpetrator’s a mystery. Senator Torra was thousands of miles away during the attempted murder. And he’s not a hacker. You, however, are a hacker, not to mention a dark master, and made off with Ms. Ericksen from a government-run high-security facility. Tell me, Mr. Jorgensen, how is it both women traveling with you, two powerful trainers, were harmed. One dead.”
Anxiety loosened Rolf’s iron self-control. Not worry for himself. No. His voice shook before he could steady it. “Geneva? Is she—how is she?”
There was a long pause. Rolf didn’t think Caleb Stone would answer. Until he did.
“Alive, barely, but she’ll survive. Her brothers guard her day and night. Geneva Ericksen was lucky. Kaitlyn Girard, not so fortunate. What did you do to her?”
“I didn’t kill her.”
“Don’t bullshit me. You are this close—” Caleb Stone held two fingers in front of Rolf’s face. Heat traveled from those two fingers straight into Rolf’s brain— “to being wiped from existence.”
Rolf stared at Caleb’s fingers a moment, trying to slow the adrenaline rush in his veins inciting the dark energy. Now wasn’t the time to lose control. Rolf didn’t think Caleb Stone would take it well. He had extraordinary abilities if he could hack into Rolf’s mind.
“Yes, Mr. Jorgensen. I’m a rare breed. You have no idea. Capable of feats you can only dream about.”
He let out a short laugh as if he’d told a joke, but Rolf found nothing about Caleb Stone amusing.
“I’ve been sent to wipe your mind, you know. Render you harmless, which in a hacker of your caliber involves death. Fortunately for you, I don’t always follow orders. Unfortunately, I’m impatient and bored enough to take action. Now tell me what happened. Much easier to have you tell me than having to root around in your head for memories. No lies. I’ll know it.”
Rolf spoke rapidly. “Geneva was hacked by Senator Torra and Kaitlyn Girard. The senator used dark energy—my energy—to complete the hack. He and his daughter, Cynthia, forced me to release it into fabricated crystals capable of storing psychic energy. Geneva believed the energy was mine and because she trusted me, made herself vulnerable to it. You haven’t killed me.”
Caleb Stone sighed. “Not yet.”
“Why not?”
“Because your sister believes in your innocence. I have a soft spot for your sister.”
“Julia? You know her?”
Caleb Stone smiled. “We go way back.”
“Last I saw her, she had come out of a coma. Is she fully recovered?”
“Recovered enough to plead for your life. I don’t care to disappoint her.”
“If you’re not planning to kill me, why am I immobile? Why did you hack into my mind?”
“Precautionary. You see, despite Julia’s assertions, I wasn’t sure what you’d become.”
“I haven’t turned.”
“You’re close.”
“I won’t turn. Will you grant me my freedom? You’re in my head. You can see I speak the truth.”
“I’m afraid it’s not that easy. The CMU believes you’re a threat. They want hard evidence that what you say is true. Your memories don’t count. Whoever held you captive could have tampered with them. Geneva isn’t a credible witness. She loves you. Her brothers have gone on record stating you hacked into their sister’s mind and would have killed her if she hadn’t ejected you in self-defense. They believe you’ve gone rogue. That you’ve brainwashed Geneva into thinking you care for her. That you are using your dark energy to keep her enthralled, manipulating her for your own selfish motives.”
“But that’s ridiculous.”
“Is it, Mr. Jorgensen? Did you not hack into her mind?”
“Yes, but I had to. The senator would have killed her otherwise. I had to save her.”
“I can see you believe what you say. But why did she eject you?” He raised one eyebrow, those strange blue eyes peering into Rolf’s as if they magnified all his fears and insecurities. Which they did. “Ah, there’s the rub. The one who loves you most doubts your ability to control the dark side of your nature.”
Caleb Stone rose from his chair and walked across the room. Rolf heard the sound of running water. He returned some moments later with a cup, propped Rolf’s head forward and brought the cold liquid to his lips. “Drink. I’m not a cruel man, despite what you believe.”
Rolf didn’t hesitate. He drank, greedy for every last drop. He finished, and Caleb Stone moved away. Rolf heard the rattle of a dish, so assumed Caleb returned the cup to wherever he’d gotten it. A moment later and he was once again leaning over Rolf’s bedside.
“We need evidence, Mr. Jorgensen. We need the crystals you say the senator and his daughter made. We need to find them, wherever they’re hidden, and present them to the CMU. Only then will we be able to convince the CMU of your innocence.”
“That’s easy enough. Hack into the senator’s mind. You’ll find all the evidence you need.” He frowned, and would have rubbed his chin if he wasn’t paralyzed.
The ax-faced Caleb Stone broke into his smile-sneer. “That’s impossible.”
“What do you mean?”
“The senator is dead. Found in his Washington D.C. apartment an hour ago by his assistant. The official autopsy report is death by massive aneurysm.”
Of course. Some of the senator’s energy had gotten caught in the cross waves and absorbed into Geneva’s mind. He hadn’t made it back in one piece. “That leaves…”
“Cynthia Torra.”
“Yes. She’ll know where the crystals are.”
“I told you I’m a specialist. There’s a reason for that. I can go after hackers and only in a dream state. I pursue dark rogue monsters like yourself.”
“I told you, I haven’t gone rogue. If you can’t hack Cynthia, assign someone else the job.”
“Who? The Ericksen brothers? They’re convinced of your guilt like everyone else in the CMU. I’m afraid the only one who can save you is—you.”
“How am I supposed to save myself tied to this damn hospital bed?” Did the man think he had superpowers?
For the first time since he’d introduced himself, Caleb Stone smiled, a genuine smile. “Oh, I can remedy that.” For a moment, Rolf was taken aback. With his dark hair and glint in his navy-blue eyes, his interrogator almost looked kind. “However, you need to know something. If I let you go, and you turn to the dark side of your nature, I will hunt you down, and I will kill you, despite your sister’s protests. Do you understand?”
Rolf nodded. “Of course. I won’t turn.”
Caleb Stone frowned. “If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard that I’d be rich. They all turn sooner or later, Mr. Jorgensen. Dark ones are incapable of finding true happiness with another. They cannot love. It is their destiny.”
“No. Not mine. I do love another. I always have.”
Caleb Stone reacted so fast, Rolf did not see his movements. But he couldn’t avoid looking into those searing blue eyes that saw everything when the man leaned over his face. “Do you, Rolf Jorgensen? Do you love her?”
Rolf tried not to blink. “Yes.”
Caleb Stone reared, his expression triumphant. “Good. Prove it. You’re going to need Geneva’s talent to outsmart Cynthia Torra. But as the saying goes, ‘There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.’ Remember that, Mr. Jorgensen. Now, let’s see if we can get you moving.”
A glint of silver caught Rolf’s eye, and his heart lurched in his chest. Caleb Stone wielded a wicked-looking sword. He raised it above his head and slashed downward in a movement so fast Rolf forgot to breathe. The sword lanced his skull, sending a white-hot stabbing pain through him, and he was once again falling into blackness.
He opened his eyes. What the hell? Where was Caleb Stone and the hospitable room? Rolf lay sprawled over Kaitlyn’s lifeless body. He’d struck his head on some metal object hanging from the ceiling and hallucinated Caleb Stone. That had to be it. But what a hallucination it had been. He could still feel the slash of the blade where it had sliced into his head.
Voices came from the darkness. Geneva’s brothers. He had just enough time to launch himself into the wall.
43
The Scarlet Heart
Running had never been Rolf’s favorite form of exercise. He preferred more adventurous outdoor activities—rock climbing, mountain biking, skiing. But he’d never run for his life before, dashing through factory walls with the mad Ericksen brothers in hot pursuit. It brought a whole new level of meaning to the words “extreme sports.”
He lost the brothers somewhere close to Tower City Center, when he managed to slip through the walls of the building and lose himself in a crowd of shoppers. The entire time, he couldn’t stop thinking about the dream man, Caleb Stone. What had he meant with his cryptic comments? Could any of it be real? His sister was the dream talent, not Rolf. So what had prompted such an intense dream?
One thing Caleb Stone was wrong about. He wouldn’t use Geneva’s talents to outsmart Cynthia. He refused to let Geneva anywhere close to Cynthia Torra again. Not if he could help it. He wanted her safe. He’d find another way to locate the missing crystals.
“Danny, where’s Rolf?” Geneva asked the moment she opened bleary eyes to spy Danny, dressed in a black T-shirt and sweatpants, sitting next to her bed. She fingered her blue hospital gown. It appeared she had returned to a hospital. “You look worse than I feel. Where am I?”
“Take it easy. You’re at the Cleveland Clinic. You’ve had a rough go. You’re lucky to be alive.”
She lifted her head, or at least she tried to, but her body wouldn’t cooperate. She put a hand to her forehead. The effort zapped her strength. “No one’s harmed him, have they?”
Danny sighed. “Leave it to you to come back from the dead, and the first thing you do is ask about Rolf.”
“Danny Ericksen, if you don’t tell me what I want to know right now, I swear I’ll, well, I don’t know what I’ll do, but it won’t be pleasant.
“All right, all right. Don’t get excited. He’s still alive as far as I know.”
“What do you mean?”
Danny settled back in the chair. “After we found you, we tracked him to where he hid out in an old factory, but he leaped through the wall. We lost him after that.”
“Thank God. Do you believe what I told you?”
“Sure.”
Geneva blinked. Gray and brown energy waves issued forth with his words. “Don’t lie to me. I may be sick, but I still see colors. You don’t believe a word of what I told you. So let me repeat myself. Rolf’s a good man. He’s not a threat. We are—were—linked. We will be linked again. He saved my life from Senator Torra, who tried to kill me. What?”
“You need to rest.”
She propped herself on her elbows. “Dammit, what aren’t you telling me?”
Danny’s lips tilted down, his aura shifting from gray to his customary royal blue.
“Senator Torra is dead.”
Geneva didn’t blink. “Yes, I told you he was. I killed him. Self-defense—the man’s evil. He hacked into my mind. I closed the portal he used, ejecting him. I did my best to make sure he got caught in the cross waves.”
Danny’s gaze shifted away from her. He shook his head, his energy drawing inward, but a bit of dark navy escaped. He didn’t believe her. “The CMU investigated Senator Torra. He isn’t a hacker. He doesn’t have talent. It would have been impossible for him to hack into your mind. Cynthia Torra has disappeared. Her publicist issued a statement. She denies there are any crystals and fears for her life. She claims you and Rolf stalked and killed her father and are now after her. She’s gone into hiding until Rolf is found and you’re both arrested for murder.”
