In Darkness Transformed Read online

  He never thought he’d find anything about his freaky nature funny, but he was grateful to her for making him laugh about it at least this once. And to show his gratitude, he poured everything he had into round two.

  TIME HAD NO meaning in the dark comfort of Eli’s bed. Safara could’ve lain there next to him for an eternity and never grown tired of being comforted by his powerful body and gentle touches. Unfortunately, the sun would soon rise over the mountain, and their first night together would have to end. Until it did, though, she wasn’t going to waste a single second on sleep.

  “You’re thinking too hard. It’s keeping me awake.”

  Eli’s deep voice was a grumbly rumble right next to her ear, his breath a warm flutter against her skin. They were lying spooned together, his arm over her waist and holding her flush against his chest. Neither of them had bothered putting on any of their scattered clothing, partially because it would take too much effort to hunt it all down, but mainly they’d just have to take it all off again the next time they made love.

  And from the impressive pressure against her backside right now, that time might be any minute now. “Well, maybe I could do something to take the edge off so you can get back to sleep.”

  She pressed back against him and wiggled a little to get his attention. “I think this would be round four. Are you up for it?”

  “I think the answer to that is pretty obvious.” He caught her hand and pressed it against some pretty hard evidence. Then he laughed and reached for the box on the bedside table. “Besides, who’s counting?”

  “Not me.”

  Sunrise would come when it would. Until it did, she lost herself in her lover’s kiss.

  BREAKFAST WAS A joint effort. She made fresh blueberry muffins while Eli cooked the bacon and scrambled a skillet full of eggs. The rain had moved on during the night, leaving the sky overhead clear. They decided to eat out on the porch where the air was fragrant with the damp scent of cedar and firs.

  It had seemed like too much food for two people, but they managed to eat most of it. Thanks to last night’s activities, they’d both worked up bigger than normal appetites. When they were done, Eli carried the dishes back inside and returned with a second cup of coffee for each of them. For a short time, they were content to sip the rich brew and enjoy the quiet sounds of the surrounding woods.

  Safara didn’t know about Eli, but she was reluctant to break the silence. The last thing she wanted right now was for the outside worlds to intrude on this special time they were sharing. They couldn’t ignore their problems for long, but she’d be grateful for every minute of peace they got.

  Unfortunately, Eli’s cell phone started ringing. He stared at it for a few seconds before finally sliding his finger over the screen to accept the call. As he did so, he stood up and turned his back to her. Whoever was calling clearly was cause for alarm. Considering his body language, it wouldn’t hurt to offer him a little privacy. She picked up both coffee cups and headed back into the cabin.

  The sound of his voice carried even through the thick cabin walls. Although she couldn’t make out the specific words, the tone was all too clear. He sounded angry or maybe concerned. While she waited for him to finish, she poured another cup of coffee and then started washing the dishes. The door opened just as she set the last one in the drainer. Eli usually let the dishes dry on their own, but she needed something to keep her hands busy. Picking up a towel, she began wiping a plate.

  “Is everything okay?”

  “Not exactly. We’re about to get company. Two friends of mine, guys I served with in the army.”

  She set the dish towel aside and turned to face him. “Do they know what happened? You know, in the helicopter crash?”

  Because she could only imagine how those conversations would’ve gone. Then it occurred to her to ask, “Does this mean you’re considered AWOL from the army?”

  His expression turned even more grim. “I will be if the powers that be ever figure out that I survived. As far as I know, the official word is that I died in the crash.”

  Something was definitely off about what he’d just said, maybe in the way he said it. “And the unofficial word?”

  “From what I hear, the jury might be still out on that, which is why I need to explain a few things before my friends get here.” He checked his watch. “Which will be in about fifteen minutes.”

  She took a seat at the table. “I’m listening.”

  14

  Where to start? Not all the way back at the beginning of this mess. She already knew he’d died in the crash, a fact that hadn’t rattled her nearly as much as it had him. Still did, in fact. But then she’d grown up knowing such a thing was possible. He’d never even heard of the Paladins, much less that he might’ve come out of the same gene pool. At least he now had an explanation for his freaky ability to heal.

  “I take it you trust these men.”

  He spun a chair around backward and straddled it, his arms crossed on the back. “With my life. With yours, too, for that matter.”

  Her eyebrows sank low over her eyes at that comment. “You’re not going to tell them everything I’ve told you, Eli. You can’t.”

  And there was the problem. How did he tell Mike and Jamison about what he’d learned about his weird DNA without telling them where it had come from? “Your truth has become so twisted up with mine that it will be hard to separate it all out.”

  She slammed her hands down on the table. “Damn it, you promised, Eli.”

  Maybe not in so many words, but that didn’t mean anything. Not after last night. They might not have a future together, but he wouldn’t dishonor what they did have with a betrayal. He met her angry gaze head-on but kept his voice low and even. “You have my word that I will do my damnedest to keep your people out of the line of fire, Safara. My friends don’t need to know anything about Kalithia, the rogues, or the truth about your people who live in our world.”

  She slowly nodded as most of the tension drained out of her posture. “So what are you going to tell them?”

  “That depends on why they’re coming up here. Major Mike Voss was . . . is my commanding officer. He was the first one to find out I was still alive. He figured I might need someone else I could contact if things go to hell in a handcart and thought Jamison Shaw would be a good choice. Doc was the medic in our unit until he left the service a while back to go to nursing school. He shouldn’t be on anyone’s radar. Some of my other friends might be.”

  “Just whose radar is Mike worried about?”

  He couldn’t risk dragging her into his problems when she already had so much on her own plate, but she should be forewarned. “Mike didn’t know that last time he and I talked. He sent Jamison up here to show me pictures of some guys. They were poking around the crash site and asking a bunch of questions, but they weren’t part of the usual alphabet soup agencies that investigate that sort of thing.”

  Safara got up to top off her coffee. “Why would he assume they were interested in you?”

  “Nothing specific, but Mike’s got a top-notch bullshit detector. If he sensed something was off about those guys, I believe him. Afterward, he came up to Martin’s cabin, hoping to locate someone who might have known me.” He couldn’t help but laugh. “You should’ve seen the look on his face when he found me instead.”

  He rubbed his jaw in memory of that particular conversation. “I slashed my hand open to convince him that I was telling him the truth about what happened.”

  She looked horrified. “Did you have to do that for Jamison, too?”

  He chuckled. “No, but it was a close thing. Mike had already told him about it, and Doc kept staring at my hand whenever he thought I wouldn’t notice.”

  “How are you going to explain me being here?”

  “Good question.” He gave the matter some thought. “It might be safer for you if we tell them you were here for professional reasons. You know, stick as close to the truth as possible and play the deputy car
d. Tell them your grandfather was attacked up here on the mountain and that I found him. You needed to ask me some follow-up questions.”

  “And how do we explain how I got here without my patrol car?”

  Good point. “You left your vehicle where the attack happened and then hiked your sexy ass over here.”

  Her cheeks flushed a bit rosy at his comment, but she looked pleased with his assessment. “Okay, but maybe I’d better put on my uniform.”

  She headed down the hall toward the bathroom. Good thinking on her part. Meanwhile, he did a quick survey of the cabin to see if there was anything else that might cause them problems.

  The dish drainer held two of everything. He shoved the clean dishes back into the cabinets, and then headed for the bedroom. The sheets and blankets were a twisted mess, not to mention the empty foil packets scattered on the bedside table. He gathered them up and stuck them into his pocket to toss in the trash under the kitchen sink. It didn’t take him long to put the bed to rights even though he hated erasing all evidence of the amazing night they’d shared. Of course, if Safara followed her original intentions of staying up on the mountain until tomorrow, maybe they could have a repeat performance. A man could always hope.

  She followed him into the room. “Oh man, you’re fast. I was just coming in here to make the bed myself.”

  He pulled her close for a quick kiss. “After Mike and Jamison leave, we can have fun messing it up again. You know, just so you can have a turn straightening things up.”

  She patted him on the cheek. “Wow, the sacrifices you’re willing to make. What a guy.”

  The sound of a big fist pounding on the front door cut their conversation short. “I’m guessing your friends are here.”

  “Their timing always did suck.”

  She followed him back down the hall, stopping him before he reached the front door. “So are we going to go with me being up here for professional reasons only?”

  He considered that option but finally rejected it. “On second thought, no. That might be why you’re here today, but these guys are great at reading body language. If we try to convince them that we’re not even friends, they’re going to think we’re hiding something.”

  Which they were.

  She looked doubtful but didn’t argue. “I’ll follow your lead.”

  When the knocking started again, he yelled, “Hold your horses. I’m coming.”

  He yanked the door open to find Jamison standing there with his fist ready to start another round of pounding.

  “What took you so long, Sarge?”

  Then he spotted Safara and stumbled back a step, his gaze ping-ponging between her and Eli. “Uh, Major, Sarge has company of the female persuasion. We should come back later.”

  Mike joined him on the porch. “If this is a bad time . . .”

  “No, it’s fine.” Eli stepped back and opened the door wider. “Come on in.”

  Once his friends filed inside, he performed the necessary introductions. “Major Mike Voss, Jamison ‘Doc’ Shaw, this is Deputy Safara Dennell from down in Ridgewick.”

  Safara offered her hand to each man in turn. “It’s nice to meet you.”

  Mike kept it quick and professional. “Same here, Deputy.”

  In contrast, Jamison held on to her hand a little longer. “So, Deputy Dennell, what kind of trouble is our boy in? Do we need to arrange for bail? ’Cause I’m not sure we’ll be able to scrape up the money anytime soon.”

  Then the jerk flashed his dimples that always attracted more than his fair share of women over the years. “Maybe the two of us can negotiate a better deal for him over dinner sometime.”

  Eli considered punching his friend, but Safara only rolled her eyes at Jamison’s heavy-handed flirting. “Sorry to disappoint, Doc, but he isn’t in trouble.”

  She glanced at Eli and then continued. “I stopped by to follow up on an incident that happened a couple of days ago. My grandfather was assaulted by persons unknown while he was hiking. Eli found Granddad and got him to the hospital down in Ridgewick just in time. Otherwise, we might’ve lost him.”

  There was no mistaking the very real emotion in her voice. “I came to let him know Granddad is expected to make a full recovery, all thanks to him. The county sheriff’s department is handling the investigation, but I wanted to take a look around the site where it happened for myself.”

  Mike glanced at Eli as he said, “We’re sorry to hear about your grandfather. I’m glad he’s going to be okay.”

  Jamison nodded in agreement and added, “Your grandfather is lucky that it was Sarge who found him. Eli here has a real talent for saving people’s asses. I can’t tell you how many in our unit owe their lives to him.”

  Eli appreciated the sentiment, but he didn’t deserve it. Not anymore. He sure as hell hadn’t done a damn thing for Montez and the others who died in the crash. Yeah, he didn’t crash the helicopter, but he still carried a shitload of guilt for walking away when they didn’t. He couldn’t imagine a time when the memory of their deaths would fade, when it wouldn’t still stab like a knife to his heart.

  That was a worry for another day. Right now, he needed to figure out what was going on with Mike and Doc. It might not have been obvious to someone who didn’t know them well, but they were far more worried about what had happened to Safara’s grandfather than they should be. It wasn’t like they actually knew Halder.

  “You guys park it on the couch while I make some coffee for everybody.”

  Safara stopped him. “Why don’t I do that? I’m sure the three of you have a lot to talk about. While it’s brewing, I can check in with my office.”

  “Okay. The coffee is in the canister on the counter, and the mugs are in the cabinet to the left of the sink.”

  She headed for the kitchen, calling back over her shoulder, “I’ll manage as long as you don’t mind me rooting around to find what I need.”

  “No problem.”

  Meanwhile, Mike was edging toward the door. “It’s a nice day out, Eli, and I’ve spent too many hours shut up in the car with Doc. Can we sit out on the porch?”

  “Sure thing. Give me a minute, and I’ll be right out.”

  He’d noticed that both men looked a bit ragged around the edges. He wasn’t surprised that Doc was still sporting his ponytail, but he didn’t usually look like he’d slept in his clothes. Normally, the major looked pretty spit-and-polished even in civvies, but he hadn’t shaved and had dark circles under his eyes.

  After his friends disappeared out onto the porch, Eli joined Safara in the kitchen. “I don’t know what’s going on with them, but it doesn’t look good. Can you give us a few minutes alone?”

  She filled the reservoir on the coffeemaker. “Not a problem. I really do need to call Dad. Now’s as good a time as any.”

  He checked to make sure Mike and Doc weren’t peeking in the windows to see what was taking him so long. Then he wrapped his arms around Safara from behind, pulling her back against his chest. Nuzzling the side of her neck, he said, “I’m sorry they interrupted our morning, but I can’t imagine that they’ll stay long.”

  She angled her head to the side as she measured out the coffee, which he took to mean that she liked what he was doing and wanted more of it. He nibbled his way down the curve of her neck. When he teased the shell of her ear with the tip of his tongue, she shivered.

  “Better stop that before they come looking for you. Take as long with them as you need. When it’s safe to come out, stick your head in the door and ask when the coffee will be ready or if I need help carrying it out. Meanwhile, take the extra muffins for them to munch on.”

  He kissed her one last time. “Yes, ma’am, will do. And thanks for being so understanding.”

  When he joined Mike and Doc on the porch, they both gave him the evil eye. Leave it to Doc to be the one to start the interrogation. “So how long have you and the lovely lady of the law been, um, friends?”

  “Since right after I moved up here
to the mountain.”

  No use in telling them how that meeting came about. If they found out he’d charged to her rescue armed with nothing but a broadsword, they’d never let him hear the end of it. “I asked her if she could check into how Grandpa Martin died, although I told her he was a distant relative. She got a copy of the report from the county sheriff’s office for me.”

  Mike reached for one of the muffins. “So was she curious about why a distant relative had moved into Martin’s cabin instead of his grandson?”

  “I told her about the helicopter crash. If she did any checking into my story, the facts would confirm Eli Yates was part of the crew that died that day.”

  Damn, he hated lying to his friends, even in a small way. At least they seemed to buy what he was selling. “So what happened that brought you both up here today? I thought we were going to keep in-person contact to a minimum.”

  Doc gave the door a pointed look. “Do we have time to talk before Safara rejoins us?”

  “Yeah, she needed to call her father, who’s the chief of police in town. He’s at the hospital with her grandfather.”

  Mike frowned. “About the old man. Do you think he was attacked by the guys who might be hunting you?”

  Eli couldn’t tell them the truth about who was behind the attack, but he could reassure them that it had nothing to do with him. “No way. Whoever attacked Halder did a sloppy job of it. The men you saw at the crash site have no reason to go after Halder, but regardless it would have been a clean kill.”

  “That’s good. Well, not that he got attacked, but that it was someone else.” Mike drew a deep breath and launched into his explanation. “I got a call from an army buddy who works in personnel back east. He wanted to know what I’d done to garner the attention of some super-secret group whose headquarters is located in a distant corner of the base. They came in asking about me and one of my men who’d gone missing recently. He said these guys are black ops for sure, the kind where no one knows who they report to or who holds their leashes. They must have a helluva operating budget, because they have all the cool toys.”