Hunting the Shadows Read online

  Body curled tightly, wrists and ankles bound, Ajay slumped forward on the ground, unconscious. A bruise darkened her jaw, another over her cheek beneath her eye. She’d fought him but he was stronger. She should have never allowed him near her.

  The others were out there, searching. He’d wasted too much time.

  He knelt beside her prone form and ran his finger along her cheek. “Wake up. I’ve waited long enough for you.”

  Her violet eyes opened, unfocused. He saw the fear in them and smiled because she knew…there was no escape. “What did you do to me? Why can’t I—”

  Feel. See. Use her abilities. “I don’t want you to.”

  She flinched. “They’re going to get you. You may succeed in killing me, but you aren’t going to get away with this. They’ll know the truth.”

  Goddamn women, always thinking they could control a man. She should know better. She shied back from him but really, where could she go?

  Leaning in, he curled his hand in her hair, pulling her head back. She struggled with her bonds and he watched desperation brighten her eyes. “No one will find you.”

  * * *

  There was no relief in dreams. Amy slept fitfully, her mind in turmoil as she rolled over. The killer’s mind ensnared, held and she shuddered as she crawled back to consciousness, jerking out of the nightmare.

  The images flashed through her mind, a slideshow of blurred movement and sights. Nausea burned up the back of her throat. Forcing herself into a sitting position, Amy searched through the darkness, expecting him to be there in the shadows of the room, watching her. But she was alone.

  “J.C., he has her somewhere in the Crypt and she doesn’t have a lot of time.” She was already shoving blankets away so that she could reach for her clothes. When her mind came up against a block, she frowned. “J.C.?”

  She began to chew on her nails before she caught herself. Knowing J.C. kept a second gun under the bed, Amy dropped to her knees. The box was still there, long white strips of plastic locking it in place against the bottom of the mattress. Skimming her hand up along the box, she quickly worked in the code. The gun was a strange weight. She’d never held one before.

  Awareness rippled through her and goosebumps exploded over her skin.

  Dropping the gun onto the pillow, she scribbled a quick note to J.C. in case he came back to his room before she saw him. He’d been gone all night and she had no idea where he was. She needed to find him. Now.

  “Damn it, J.C., I know where he is. He’s in the Crypt, in the cell where I found the locket.”

  Nothing but static. Frustration curdled in her stomach as she rose from the floor, pushing up on her hands and knees. Pain shuddered up her thigh and she curled her hands in the blanket to stop from falling.

  “He can’t hear you.” It wasn’t J.C.’s voice.

  She jerked her head up, desperate as she raked her gaze through the thick shadows. The voice spilled into her brain and she grabbed the gun, waving it around as she spun in a circle. “What’d you do to him?”

  “Nothing.” The voice trailed off. “It’s what I’m going to do to you that you should be more worried about.”

  If the killer could neutralize her abilities, then he was close.

  She didn’t think about moving silently or being cautious when she threw open the bedroom door, stumbling over the two guards that’d been assigned to watch her. Dead.

  She wasn’t the same person she’d been when she was first locked up. But the terror, that was the same, the nausea all too familiar.

  The lights in the corridor were harsh to her eyes. She blinked and found herself staring at Stefan and the gun he held.

  “You can’t run, Amy.”

  Her fingers tightened around her own gun, squeezing off a shot. It went wild, the recoil knocking her back in surprise. She hit the wall, crashing against the dead body of one of the guards. With a yelp of surprise she scrambled away before Stefan could get to her, even when he called after her.

  She bolted down the metal stairs, tasting hysteria with each breath she drew.

  Overhead the lights flickered and she flinched at the thought of being trapped in the dark when he was so close behind her.

  “Leave me alone. J.C. knows, Stefan. I told him where Ajay is.”

  It was a lie. A well placed one, but a lie nevertheless and all she could hope was that he didn’t see through her bluff.

  Her pulse pounded in her ears. She didn’t have time to adjust to the darkness when the lights blinked out. The only thing to do was pitch forward down the steps and into a narrow corridor. On either side of the hall, two doors led into another level.

  Amy tried the door on the left first and then the second but both were locked. Movement came from somewhere behind her and she turned, her eyes searching.

  She knew he was there. Watching.

  “You’re too late, Amy.”

  She glanced up, into the eyes of Rick Gurvitch. Pain exploded in her head as he hit her and she collapsed at his feet.

  * * *

  It irritated J.C. that he couldn’t connect with Amy. He never expected to be annoyed that the nosey woman wasn’t in his head. She had no problems going into his head during normal circumstances, but now that there was a killer out there, she’d disappeared. She was completely incommunicado.

  Worry tightened his gut and made his heart race. She’d pushed herself too hard and it was taking a toll on her. The on-call doctor had prescribed a cocktail of seizure preventing drugs and something to thin out her blood, but she refused to give her system a break. One that lasted more than a few hours.

  He wanted to check in on her, to make sure she was resting, but damn it, Cameron hadn’t returned to relieve him of duty. He’d been in charge of organizing the search crews and like before, they’d come up empty handed. The only piece of evidence they had was the dead body of the woman he and Amy had found.

  Erin.

  According to the lab results, she’d been murdered approximately a day after Stefan had been captured.

  Results were inconclusive on whether it had been a copycat or not, thanks to the fact that an animal had torn into her throat and face.

  J.C. sighed as thunder rumbled outside, rubbing his hand over his tired face. The afternoon heat had turned into another storm. It was the bad thing about the mountains, the storms were always so focused. The first drops began to fall.

  The lights flickered overhead. They’d been doing that all day.

  Restless, he walked into the brainstorming room. A map of the grounds had been set up over the conference table.

  J.C. kneaded the back of his neck. His eyes felt gritty, but staring at the damn map wasn’t going to get him any answers. Not when he’d been over it for what seemed like a hundred times. He began to turn toward the coffeepot then decided against it, figuring his blood was already ninety percent caffeine. What he needed was to close his eyes for a bit. He was running on black coffee and military ready-to-eat meals. They didn’t exactly settle comfortably in a man’s stomach.

  A gun clicked at his ear.

  His instincts were slow. Lack of sleep dulled his reaction time. He should have heard something. He should have known someone had entered the room.

  “I’d think carefully if I were you. By the time you attack, a bullet will be in your brain.”

  He smiled and slowly inched his hands up as he turned to face Stefan. “We’ve been searching for you.”

  “I know but we don’t have time to talk about how I got away or what I plan to do now. You have more pressing matters.”

  J.C. snarled and for a moment, violence blanketed his mind. “Tell me where Ajay is, Stefan. Tell me that she’s alive.”

  “I didn’t do anything to Ajay.”

  He didn’t care that the gun was so close
to his face. Didn’t care that the man standing in front of him was dangerous enough to kill ten, possibly eleven, highly trained agents. Adrenaline cleared his mind of exhaustion, detaching him from having a gun focused on him. A part of him knew the truth of Stefan’s words, but it was too late to matter.

  J.C. gathered his energy, keeping it close against his chest. When he reacted, he moved both physically and psychically. His power slapped out and as he leaped for the gun, Stefan pulled the trigger. He’d focused on it, blocking the control. The gun jammed. He took that chance and moved in, striking Stefan in the throat with the palm of his hand, hard enough to knock the man to the ground.

  “Not me.” Stefan lifted his head, face red as he pulled in a gasping breath. He stared straight ahead and seemed almost dazed. But he made no other move, simply sat on the ground. “Rick. Rick killed the others and he has Amy. You don’t have time to kill me.”

  “Nice ploy.” Amy was safe in his room. He’d left her there, asleep, with two guards outside the door. He stared hard at Stefan. “Do you really expect me to believe that your brother is the killer? How stupid do you think I am?”

  “You don’t have to believe me, J.C., but she’ll die if you don’t.”

  “And I repeat, how stupid do you think I am?” Leaning down, J.C. palmed the gun Stefan had dropped. Placing it lightly to the table, he eyed the fallen man before he set it aside and reached for his pager, signaling the team. He refused to leave while he waited for them to arrive. He wouldn’t admit it, but Stefan’s words made his palms break out into a light sweat.

  “When she turns up dead, you’re going to be sorry. You offered Amy protection, J.C., like you did Leila and look what happened to her. Are you going to let the same thing happen to Amy?”

  Leaning forward on one knee, he curled his hand in Stefan’s shirt. This game, he wasn’t interested in playing. It was another way to get into his mind. Amy was safe where he’d left her. If anything had happened to her, he would have known. “Stop with the bullshit. Where’s Ajay?”

  “Ajay will be dead by now. If you go now, you may still have time to get to Amy.” Stefan’s voice shook, a hint of desperation tinting his words.

  J.C.’s blood froze.

  “Start talking, Gurvitch.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “Wake up.”

  The voice was soft and disembodied, and for a moment, it was unrecognizable as she tried to focus. Amy opened her eyes and saw nothing. Blind. She struggled past the panic, swallowing the terror before she realized she’d been blindfolded and tied to a chair. Her wrist felt vaguely naked and it dawned on her—he’d removed the band. If he hadn’t been so close, if his presence hadn’t tampered with her mind, she would have been overwhelmed.

  Ajay. She had to find her.

  “Bastard.”

  His laugh sent a shudder up her spine and Amy struggled in the restraints. “I won’t argue with you. And I’m sure poor Ajay would have agreed if she were still alive.” Her head pounded as she tried to sort through his words. She had to focus. “Pretty, Amy,” he whispered. He ran a finger along her throat and chuckled when she jumped.

  He pressed his hand tightly against her larynx. When she thought her mind couldn’t spin any more out of control, he let up, allowing her half a breath before he squeezed again. The pressure eased then released and she gasped, wheezing as she sucked in air.

  “Why are you doing this?” Her mouth felt as though it were filled with sand.

  “You know the answer to that.”

  His hands pressed against the back of her head and the blindfold fell to the ground.

  Rick. The puzzle pieces began to fall into place. Rick, who was always around when she overloaded. Rick, who helped them search for Ajay, knowing full well where to avoid. Who’d searched the Crypt himself. “What do you plan to do?”

  “Nothing you should worry your pretty little head about. You won’t be around long enough to be part of my plan anyway. You had potential, Amy. I thought with a little training, yo—”

  “I’d never be your accomplice.”

  He chuckled. “I can see how you might think that.” He sobered suddenly, folding his sleeves up. Her stare fell to his arms, to the dark, red scratches when he’d attacked her before. “If only you hadn’t run to J.C. He can’t help you, you know. He’s going to have to die.”

  She noticed for the first time the signature, the mark that was like a fingerprint. How had she missed it before? Had all the drugs he used to pump into her system affected her ability to see him properly? Amy struggled to remain lucid. “You’re crazy.”

  His fist caught her in the jaw and the force snapped her head back. The dizziness swallowed her and she shook her head to clear her vision when it swam.

  “Respect, Amy. You should know better. I thought I taught you better.” He sighed as though she were an undisciplined child, tsking her softly. “You would have died without me. You should have by all rights if I hadn’t stepped in.”

  “I was a child.”

  “You would have died,” he repeated.

  Amy struggled through his words. She stared at Rick, blinking back the shadows of her vision. “They could have helped you, Rick. They could have done something.”

  His laugh was incredulous. “I did what I had to do. You don’t seem to understand. Imagine yourself in my shoes, unable to feel a fucking thing, knowing from day one that you were different, that for some reason you were hungry…but you weren’t sure what you were hungry for. Then your schoolmate loses control and at that first taste of her life energy you realize that you need it.”

  Her gaze dropped to the corner of the room where a woman lay crumpled on the floor. Blood still dripped over the smooth column of Ajay’s throat. Revulsion shook her system, tears blurring her vision. There was no way that Ajay was alive, not with so much blood spilled.

  Oh God.

  Transfixed on the sight, she didn’t keep track of Rick and when he wound his hand in her hair, pulling her head back, fear skittered through her veins. “You had problems adapting to new situations. You were weak and becoming withdrawn. When I came across you, you were dying.”

  The chair tipped back then fell forward into place, so fast that if she hadn’t been tied down, she would have flopped to the ground. Clenching her fists, Amy pulled at the restraints and felt the bonds rub at her wrists.

  “I wouldn’t struggle too much.” He stepped around her. “You can’t get out. The only thing you’ll accomplish is to rub your skin raw. Not that it matters, but why make yourself more uncomfortable if there’s no need?”

  “J.C. knows about you,” she lied.

  He smiled. “If that were true then where is he? He certainly isn’t here. Or maybe you don’t mean as much to him as you think you do.” Leaning in, Rick touched her cheek, stroking his finger along her skin. She turned her face away.

  Desperate for J.C. to hear—knowing that Rick wasn’t going to let her get through, but having to try—she rushed. “J.C.? I need you. It’s Rick…please help…he’s the killer.”

  The sickness came again and she drifted on it.

  Rick settled his hands on her shoulders, seemingly unaware of her disgust when he touched her. “It’s just you and me.”

  * * *

  J.C.’s stomach sank, curdling with fear every moment Amy’s mind remained blocked. Stefan had passed out, his wounds extensive, but J.C. remembered Stefan’s final words.

  Rick was the killer?

  He hadn’t even suspected Rick. At the age of two Rick had been charted with some kind of ability, enough to earn him the tattoo, but it’d regressed. Broderick had been disappointed to realize that one of his sons had no abilities, and the one who did was a complete pussy.

  But they were wrong. Rick’s abilities had simply manifested into a different form t
hat barely registered.

  J.C. rubbed a hand over his mouth and contemplated everything he knew of the case. Damn it, Stefan’s DNA had been found in a victim’s locket. The knife used at a murder had been stashed in his room. Stefan worked with the children. The evidence was all there. It’d all fallen into place…too perfectly. Why would Rick set up his own brother?

  “You need to see this.”

  He glanced over at Darilynn and took the paper she handed him. “What am I reading?”

  “You’ll never guess who incarcerated Tristan.”

  Fuck.

  His mouth went dry. “Let me guess. Rick.”

  He’d lied to them about his association with Tristan. Why didn’t that surprise him?

  “It was buried in the records. I had to dig through the system.” She adjusted the glasses on her nose. “Get this, Tristan had three black marks.”

  “So you think Rick cut him a deal?”

  She nodded. “Would explain some things. You said he freaked out when he saw you two, before he killed himself.”

  He jolted from the desk, knocking the mug over. It crashed to the ground, spilling dark liquid on the white tiles. He didn’t care. Didn’t even look back. Instead, he shouted over his shoulder, “Wake Ariadne and Davan. Get their teams out there. Stefan said Rick had Amy. I want everyone searching. Wherever Amy is, we’ll find Ajay.”

  He rushed out of the lab, his stride long and determined. Exhaustion forgotten, he raced to his room, nearly tripping in the blood as he slid across where the guards lay dead. His hand shook as he reached for the bedroom door, knowing it would be empty. As he shoved inside he was trying to reach her mentally. Still, he was unable to get through.

  “Amy, please, sweetheart, talk to me. Help me figure out where you are.”

  Don’t be dead, he thought desperately. He couldn’t have failed to protect another person he cared for. There was no way he would let that happen. He would do whatever it took to get her back. Anything.

  As he tore through the small room, something white on the bed caught his attention. He swore his heart stopped as he rushed over, hands not even close to being steady as he reached for the paper and read the neatly handwritten words: J.C., Ajay is in the Crypt. Go to the cell where I found the locket.