Dyad Dreams

An Ellora’s Cave Romantica Publication

www.ellorascave.com

Dyad Dreams ISBN 9781419922312 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Dyad Dreams Copyright © 2009 Ann Hinnenkamp Edited by Shannon Combs Cover art by Dar Albert Electronic book Publication August 2009 The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing Inc., 1056 Home Avenue, Akron, OH 44310-3502. Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

DYAD DREAMS Ann Hinnenkamp

Dedication For Frank Hinnenkamp, the best thing that ever happened to me.

Acknowledgements Thanks to all the girls: Mary Bracho, Kathleen Eagle, Amy Schumacher, Barb Longley and Cheryl Skoglund And one boy: Jim Kuether

Trademarks Acknowledgement The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction: Chippendale: Chippendales USA Evinrude: Outboard Marine Corporation Hummer: General Motors Corporation Ken Doll: Mattel, Inc. Mustang: Ford Motor Corporation Muzak: Muzak LLC Playboy Bunny: Playboy Enterprises International, Inc Rolodex: Berol Corporation Superman: DC Comics Toyota: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha, DBA t/a Toyota Motor Corporation Walkie Talkie: McZeal, Alfred, Jr. Wall Drug: Wall Drug Store Corporation

Dyad Dreams

Chapter One “I want a cross between a Playboy Bunny and a nun,” the voice bellowed out of the overhead speakers for everyone to hear. “It has to be sexy but coy, you understand? We want the consumer to think if they use Swartz’s Foot Powder, they’ll feel sexy from the feet up, but only they’ll know why. You get it? Now try again.” This is it, Eleanor thought. I’m in hell. Fantasies of stringing her agent up by his toes for making her work with this pompous, idiotic director flashed through her mind. The jerk, as she referred to him, called himself John Deveraux now, but she’d known him as plain old Ernie Gross, the high school bully she’d refused to go out with. Obviously, Ernie thought it was payback time. Eleanor put on her headphones. For over three hours she’d been standing in a soundproof glass booth, staring at a microphone on a stand in front of her. Even though she could see through the walls of her temporary prison, claustrophobia had set in. For crying out loud, it’s just a fifteen-second radio spot, not War and Peace. A successful voice talent for six years now, she’d be dammed if this no-talent pissant got the better of her. She was a professional. If the director wanted a cross between a Playboy Bunny and a nun, she would give him one. "May I have the music, please?” she said, in her most cooperative voice. “Of course, Miss Hennen,” mocked the voice from the speakers. “If you think it’ll help.” Even though this was a voice-only job, no singing, Eleanor liked to hear the music that would accompany her voice. Matching her voice to the spirit of the music was her favorite challenge. Inhaling deeply, she held it a moment and then slowly let it out. As the breath left her body, she imagined all the hostility she felt flow out with it. In her mind, it was a wisp of dark smoke she sent toward Ernie and watched as it curled its way to the production booth and shot up his nose. Smiling, she reached inside for her talent. The music began and she concentrated on what the director had asked for. She started the stopwatch in her hand, stepped closer to the microphone and underscored by Fred Astaire’s version of Let’s Face the Music and Dance, for the thirty-sixth time, began, “Do you want to feel something wonderful? Do you want the sensation of walking on air? Then you need Swartz’s Foot Powder. Bask in the luxuriant feeling of silky powder against your skin. Feet haven’t been this much fun since This Little Piggy. Swartz’s Foot Powder. Get dressed from the feet up.”

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With a feeling of accomplishment, she hit the stop button on the watch. The time was perfect, just shy of fifteen seconds. She’d also managed to get the right tone of innocent-sexy. He had his “Playboy Bunny-nun”. Turning around, she stared into the sound booth, daring Ernie to say any different. Luckily for her, the client had come in during her performance. “That was wonderful, Miss Hennen,” Dave Swartz said. “Really wonderful. You’ve got me all hot under the collar. You better be careful, I have a very jealous wife.” Eleanor liked Dave Swartz. She’d worked for him many times. He was a great bear of a man with a booming baritone voice. A local celebrity who, when his football career was over, sank his money into a small foot powder company. He’d used his name, bravado and anything else he could think of to build his small company into the number one foot powder in the country. “Thank you, Mr. Swartz. It’s nice to see you again.” “You have a wonderful voice. I can already feel our sales going up.” Eleanor couldn’t help sneaking a glance at Ernie standing a few feet behind Dave Swartz. The look on his face was worth the whole horrible afternoon. She caught his eye and gave him her best “I win” smile. For a second, he looked like he might explode but Ernie wasn’t the type of director who disagreed with the client. Certainly not a client who paid as well as Swartz’s Foot Powder. “Yes, Dave, I think you’re right.” He clapped the big man on the shoulder. “That last track was the best.” He confirmed his jerk status with Eleanor by adding, “I was starting to think we weren’t going to get it today.” “Nonsense, John.” Dave beamed. “You can’t go wrong with Miss Hennen here. She’s money in the bank.” “So that’s a wrap then?” Eleanor asked, pushing her advantage. “Yes, yes,” Ernie said. “No use wasting studio time and money.” Eleanor gathered up her things. “Will I see you at the fundraiser tonight, Mr. Swartz?” “I wouldn’t miss it. Will you sing The Way You Look Tonight? That’s Jenny’s favorite.” “Sure, see you tonight.” She threw in a “Goodbye, Ernie,” as a parting shot and left the studio. She laughed when Dave Swartz said, “Who’s Ernie?” As she left the building, she walked by Thomas Skelton, her mother’s favorite radio talk show host. He juggled some papers and dropped a page. Eleanor picked it up and gave it to him. The famous Voice of Minneapolis gave her the typical male head-to-toe once-over and smiled. “Thanks,” he said and hurried on. Digging in her purse, she pulled out her cell phone to call her mother and tell her who she’d brushed elbows with. She stopped suddenly. Her mother had been dead almost a year and she was still 6

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reaching for the phone to call her. Some things took getting used to, she thought. The trouble was, she didn’t want to get used to it. Her mother and father had died within a year of each other. It was probably just as well. Her mother had never been the same after her husband’s death. Arnie and Betty Hennen had had a wonderful marriage. They were still holding hands and tickling each other after forty years. Sometimes she missed them so much she couldn’t breathe. Even now, standing outside the radio studio building and watching people walk by, she had trouble believing they were gone. The world around her looked so normal. How could people still be walking about, attending to business, when her parents were dead? For all of Eleanor’s life, they’d been her anchor. No matter what happened, she’d always felt she had a place of refuge. Somewhere to go to get her priorities back in order. After they were gone, she’d looked around for another anchor and found it in her sister, Alice. She jumped as the phone rang in her hand. The caller ID flashed, “Alice.” Eleanor pushed the talk button. “Missing them again?” Alice said. “How do you always know? You’re spooky sometimes.” “Booga, booga.” “I ran into Thomas Skelton.” “Mom always did like him. I think they were kindred spirits. How’d the session go?” “It was Ernie, the jerk. He kept me in there for thirty-six takes. If I even see a tin of Swartz’s Foot Powder, I’m going to hurl.” Alice laughed. “I know you don’t care for him as a director, but he has a good side. He’s very good to his mother. All Ernie needs is a little love and understanding. He’ll come right in the end.” “Oh no, Al. I won’t go there, even for you. Ernie is a jerk. Always was, always will be.” “I think Ernie is another person we have to agree to disagree about.” Eleanor didn’t want to talk about Ernie anymore. “Where are you?” “I’m at the fundraiser. I waited at the house for you as long as I could, but I needed to get here early.” “How’s it look?” “Nothing a little organizing can’t remedy.” “That means it’s chaos. I’ll get there as soon as I can. I have to stop at the house to shower and change. Nobody would shell out money for a singer who looks like I do right now.” “Thanks, El. You’re the best. Could you bring a pack of the large blank cards from my desk? The silent auction labels didn’t get done.”

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“You sound nervous. Anything else wrong?” “No, it’s just…we really need the money. We have to start the outreach program. You know how many people are out there who can’t make it in to the clinic. This has to go off without a hitch.” Four years ago, Alice had offered her services to the free health clinic. Within a year, the clinic was running at top efficiency and she’d turned her energy to fundraising. She had a talent for it. This didn’t surprise Eleanor. Saying no to Alice was no easy feat. She didn’t know how her sister did it. Eleanor would be bound and determined to say “No, absolutely not,” when Alice asked for help, and the next thing she knew, she’d be at a homeless shelter, giving out food. Eleanor walked to her car. “Don’t worry. With you there it will be a success. Just do what you always do. Be yourself.” “Thanks, El. I knew I could count on…oh my.” Something in her sister’s tone unsettled Eleanor. “What…oh my, what?” Alice continued in an odd, dreamy voice. “A man just came in. He’s…different.” “Different good, or different odd?” “Oh, just different, very different.” Eleanor mentally shrugged. Probably another lost cause her sister planed on saving. “Look, Alice. I’m getting into my car. I got to go. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” “Okay,” Alice said, still sounding distracted. “Love you, bye.” “Love you, bye.” An hour later, a squeaky clean, elegantly coiffed, stiletto-clad Eleanor sped her beatup Toyota with the determination of the very tardy. At least she’d missed rush hour. Everyone said Minneapolis had some of the worst traffic in the country. She didn’t mind, she loved living here. Where else could you live in a big city and be within walking distance of a few lakes? Why would anyone live in a place that had no change of seasons? When she looked out from the freeway, the fall colors exploded back as far as she could see. Mother Nature’s fireworks display. It took the sting out of fighting traffic. The clinic’s fundraisers were always held at Sophia’s Restaurant in the trendy Uptown area. Because she was running late, she treated herself to valet parking. The moment she got out of her car, she knew something was wrong. She took the ticket from the valet and looked up the stairs to the veranda of Sophia’s. Grouped in a close huddle were two doctors from the clinic and Alice’s assistant, Grace Elliot. Grace caught Eleanor’s eye while she was coming up the stairs and motioned her over to them with a frantic wave. All three of them turned to her with worried expressions. “What?” Eleanor said. “I’m not that late, am I?” Grace pulled Eleanor to her. “Is Alice with you?”

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“No, isn’t she here?” “Well, she was here. She set up the silent auction, straightened out the food, talked to the wait staff, you know, all the things she usually does before a benefit. But we haven’t seen her in over an hour.” “Oh you know Alice. She probably has some millionaire cornered. Let’s fan out and look for her. The restaurant’s not that big. The important thing is to remain calm. We don’t want the potential donors to think there’s anything wrong, do we?” She ushered all three of them through the huge front doors. Sophia’s restaurant was a series of rooms connected together like a crazy rabbit warren. Each room had its own unique atmosphere. The center of the restaurant housed the largest room where the silent auction and Eleanor’s small stage with piano and microphone were set up. Her accompanist, Bobby Ferris, sat at the piano, looking uneasily around the room. “Nice of you to show up,” Bobby said. “Have you ever seen this much money in one room? I overheard a woman tell her friend one pool man wasn’t enough anymore. She needed another for the guest house’s two pools. Can you imagine? I’m lucky to have a bathtub, and these people are talking about a second pool man. In Minnesota! You only can use a pool for three months out of the year. Do you think any of these women would consider marriage with a semi-successful, moderately handsome musician?” “They’d be fools not to,” Eleanor said. Bobby stood and kissed her cheek. “Hello, beautiful. Mmm, you smell good. Did you break out the special date bottle?” Eleanor laughed. “Yes, but I only allowed myself one squirt.” What a shame, she thought. Why hadn’t they fallen for each other? She’d dated Bobby in high school for about a week. After a couple of dates when every time they’d kissed it’d ended in silly laughter, they’d admitted there was no spark, decided on a friendship instead. They’d been best friends ever since. The kind of friends who could tell each other anything. A When Harry Met Sally kind of thing that never developed into a romantic relationship. Grace, looking like a deer in headlights, panicked. “What are we going to do? Who will give the welcome speech? Who will run the auction? Oh my God, who will take care of the heavy-hitters like the Montgomerys and the Swartzes?” She wrung her hands in an odd squirrel-like motion. “I can’t, you know. Talk in front of people I mean. I just can’t. You won’t make me, will you?” She stopped, nearly in tears. Eleanor took her by the shoulders. “Calm down, Grace. Nobody is going to make you do anything.” What was Alice thinking, picking this woman as her assistant? She couldn’t assist at anything as far as Eleanor could tell. Every time she discussed this with Alice, she got her sister’s gentle reproving look. The look that said, Eleanor, how can you be so insensitive? You are better than that, I know you are. There was nothing to say to that look, so Eleanor always let it drop. Everybody was looking at her now. When did this become her job? Why was it 9

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when Alice wasn’t around, she was always second up? Feeling like a quarterback in a huddle, she let go of Grace and tried to organize. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do.” She turned to the taller of the two doctors. “Andy, you’re going to make the welcome speech.” Andy started to object, but she put her hand up to stop him. “You’ve heard it twenty times. You must know it by heart. Right after the speech, Bobby and I will do our set. If Alice isn’t here when we’re done, I’ll run the auction. It’s silent, right? All I have to do is run down the time until it’s over and announce the winners. How hard can it be?” The other doctor flinched when she turned to him. “Kenny, you know Mrs. Montgomery has a soft spot for you. It’s your job to take care of the heavy-hitters. Grace, you make sure all the money is collected and accounted for. Everyone keep an eye out for Alice. If anyone asks where she is, tell them she’s visiting a friend in the hospital. Okay, let’s go.” Grace and Kenny vanished into the crowd. Andy came up to Eleanor shaking his head. “I don’t know if I can do this, Eleanor. The only class I ever flunked was Public Speaking. I choke. No really, it isn’t pretty.” Positioning him in front of the microphone, she whispered, “Just picture them all naked.” Andy’s eyebrows shot up. He turned, looked over the crowd and a smile broke out on his face. Shaking his head, he gave her one last look, took a deep breath and started the welcome speech. All in all, Andy did a pretty good job. He hit his stride about halfway through and even managed to slip in a joke at the end. When he finished, he handed the microphone to her, obviously relieved. “Good luck.” He kissed her cheek and like the others, melted into the crowd. “We would like to start this evening with a request,” Eleanor said to their audience. “This first one is for you, Mr. Swartz.” Bobby began The Way You Look Tonight and for a little while, Eleanor lost herself in the wonderful feeling of performing. After each song, the applause got louder. Probably because the champagne glasses were kept full.

***** The hunt was on. Jacob took a deep breath and pushed down the adrenaline rush he’d been riding since the chase began. The bastard had finally come out of his hole for fresh victims and Jacob had been waiting for him. Constantine, once his trusted friend, now his enemy, had stepped beyond his carefully constructed shields and the other immortals had sensed him at once. Stopping in front of a high-class restaurant, Jacob rubbed his linking coin between his fingers and mentally reached for his Dyad partner, Damien. Goose bumps rose on his arms as he felt the link sink home. He gasped as Damien gently pushed his way into

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his mind, bringing with him a sense of calm. The last of the adrenaline evened out in his system as his mind clicked into the ultra-aware state he only achieved when linked. Feel like a party? Damien asked through the link. Linking never ceased to amaze Jacob. It was as if Damien were standing next to him, whispering. The beauty part was, no one else could hear them. You’re kidding, Jacob thought back to him. Not in there? He looked up at the busy restaurant. I am afraid so. We have tracked Constantine to the building in front of you. With so many people coming and going, we are unsure if he remains inside. You must overcome your distaste of social settings and become a partygoer. This could get messy, public place and all. No, Jacob. Remember your orders. Rescue those around him if you are able, but do not engage Constantine by yourself. You are human—you would lose. He can’t get away again. How many people are missing? Five, six that we know of? This has to stop, Damien, before he gets his hands on another one. I agree. I have called the others and they are speeding to assist us. Unfortunately, I am closest but still thirty minutes away. We did not think he would go into the city. The risk is so great. I sent you to Minneapolis on a whim. Everyone else is hundreds of miles away, searching the area where we last sensed him. He always was unpredictable. Taking risks was something Constantine reveled in. Always first into the fight, never stopping to think. I used to… I know, Jacob. It is what set him apart from the rest of us. His restless spirit and sense of…fun. I miss him too. Do not despair. We may yet be able to bring him back into balance. There is still hope. Not if anyone is dead. If he’s taken a life, it’s all over. The Diarchy will never allow him back. Either he will die or we will. We’re running out of time, Damien. As you say, so let us not waste another second. Go into the restaurant. Keep your linking coin close to your skin. Contact me if you find him but stay out of his path, my friend. Jacob looked up at the crowded veranda with a sense of dread. People—party— alcohol. He’d rather face a room of swarming killer bees. They are only people, Jacob. Your people. Go. Be among them. It will do you good for a change. Fine, I’m going. I’ll spend some time with clueless humans who have no idea of the danger around them. Damien laughed. Safe travels. I will be with you soon. Safe travels. He felt Damien sever the link. Bracing himself, he climbed the stairs and went into Sophia’s. Jacob hated black-tie affairs. As far as he was concerned, they were another excuse for rich, snooty people to wave their money at each other. Looking around the entrance he saw trophy wives in designer gowns on the arms of their decades-older, wealthy

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husbands. If you took away their money and social standing, what was left? Waiters circled the room with trays containing specks of frou-frou food. The smells of expensive perfume and cologne assaulted him. Mingling among them, he listened closely to their conversations for any hint of Constantine. Through the meaningless talk of new facial creams and pool cleaners, Jacob heard a beautiful voice singing an old classic. One of his favorites, Someone to Watch Over Me. Sweet, sexy, refreshingly devoid of the tricks singers used these days. This voice didn’t rely on amps or digital enhancement. It stood on its own. The voice worked on his emotions like a Pied Piper, drawing him to it. His interest piqued at the thought of the face that belonged to such a voice. Another woman’s voice stopped him. “He’s amazingly handsome, and so tall. I’ve never seen anything like him. Serious wow factor.” Jacob spun around and homed in on two trophy wives talking as if their husbands weren’t standing right next to them. He moved closer to listen. The second woman spoke. “Where is he now? Come on, Gloria, I want to see too.” “With Alice Hennen, the lucky girl, over by the silent auction tables. It was over an hour ago. Don’t know if they’re still around. If I was her I’d have whisked him to a hotel room by now. But not Saint Alice. She’ll have him at a homeless shelter helping those disgusting, out-of-work loafers instead of jumping his bones like any normal woman would. I tried to say hello, you know, introduce myself but they only had eyes for each other. Downright rude if you ask me, after all the money Ben and I have given to her clinic over the years. She should have shared a little.” Jacob had heard enough. Adrenaline coursed through him again as he turned and headed deeper into the restaurant. A swell of applause greeted him as he threaded his way into the main room. The singer had finished but he didn’t care anymore about matching the face to the voice. Constantine had to be close and a woman named Alice Hennen was in great danger.

***** When their set finished, there was still no sign of Alice. A small nagging panic started in the pit of Eleanor’s stomach. This was so unlike her sister. Should she be worried? Bobby came up behind her. “Do you want me to stick around?” “Could you? I would appreciate it. Would you start the silent auction for me? If I don’t look for Alice soon, I’m going to explode.” “Sure, no problem,” Bobby said. Was it her imagination, or was Bobby worried? After all, he knew Alice almost as well as she did. Alice would never leave one of her fundraisers. The clinic depended on these evenings for half its budget. 12

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Ten minutes later, Eleanor was deep into her search for Alice. Since she had the fine art of greeting but never stopping to chat down to an art, she’d covered quite a bit of ground. On her way back to the piano, she ran into a group of Alice’s girlfriends. “Hi, ladies. Don’t you look wonderful.” “Right back at you,” a petite brunette in a wheelchair said. “Emma, have you seen Alice lately?” “Boy did we,” Emma said. “She was with the most amazing man. Absolutely gorgeous. Tall, blond, broad-shouldered and those eyes! I got goose bumps when he looked at me. I’ve never seen eyes like that.” The others in the group sighed their agreement. Emma used the wheels to rock her chair back and forth. “Not bedroom eyes, but in the bed eyes. I felt excited and scared at the same time. We’ve been talking about him ever since.” “Where are they now?” “Don’t know, but look around.” Emma stopped rocking and fanned herself. “The man stands out, you know.” Eleanor had enough girl chatter. “Thanks. If you see Alice, tell her I’m looking for her, will you?” The girls nodded and went back to their discussion about the mystery man. Eleanor turned and ran into a brick wall. As she bounced off, rock-hard arms steadied her. She was eye level with a man’s chest. Her gaze followed the chest up, past a well-muscled neck, to the most handsome face she’d ever seen. An involuntary gasp escaped her. She was struck dumb. “Forgive me,” he said. She made a muted sound in the back of her throat as another wave of amazement ran through her. He had a deep bass voice. Absolutely beautiful and frighteningly male. It vibrated through the air and caused tingles deep inside her. Eleanor hadn’t felt a tingle in a long time. “Are you all right?” he asked. “I haven’t hurt you with my clumsiness?” After a few false starts, she found her voice. “Yes…I mean, no. I’m fine. How about you?” As soon as it left her mouth she realized what a ridiculous question it was. You didn’t ask the wall if it was all right. A smile played across his lips. “I’ll live.” Eleanor knew she should step out of his arms, but she couldn’t make her body do it. It felt so good to be held by him. So right. As if something had clicked into place she hadn’t known was out of alignment. Gray eyes looked down at her, sparkling with amusement. “You seem shaky. We did smash into each other very hard. May I help you to a chair?” How could she tell him her shakiness had nothing to do with their collision? It was him. His hands on her, his nearness and his voice making her lightheaded. 13

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His hand rose to tuck an errant curl behind her ear. The gesture felt familiar. As if he had tucked that curl hundreds of times. She watched his eyes change from amused to puzzled. “Have we met before? You are very…” He seemed to search for the right word. “Familiar.” “No. I’m sure we’ve never met.” He shook his head. “You’re right but…the pull is strong with you. Usually that means…” Eleanor gathered her scattered wits. She gestured to the poster announcing Hennen and Ferris as the evening’s entertainment. “It probably means you saw the poster and recognized me.” He looked at the poster. She used the break in eye contact to study him. He had to be at least six-foot-two, with honey-blond hair long enough to brush his collar. As she looked down his body, she realized he was underdressed for the black-tie fundraiser. He wore tight jeans and a T-shirt, topped off by a well-worn leather jacket that cut off at his waist. He must have crashed the party. She was about to ask him why when his head whipped back to her. The expression on his face silenced her. The amused gray eyes had gone cold. His arms dropped to his sides as he took a step back. “Your name is Hennen?” His tone matched his eyes. She tried to lighten the mood. “Yes. I’m the Hennen half of Hennen and Ferris. If I was the Ferris half it would be a short act. I can’t play the piano to save my soul.” His eyes narrowed. “If I were you, Miss Hennen, I’d not joke about my soul.” “What on earth do you mean by that?” “You need to be careful about the company you keep. You can’t possibly know the risk you take.” His eyes swept over the party, searching. Somehow they’d turned a corner, she and this handsome stranger. She was missing something. “Look, I have no idea what you’re talking about. The biggest risk I took tonight was singing a slightly too Muzak version of Let It Be. I don’t care for it myself, but audiences seem to eat it up.” The puzzled expression was back. “I don’t understand. You’re not his usual type. Nothing about this feels right.” “There you go again. Right over my head.” His hand shot out and grabbed her arm. “Where is he?” he demanded. “Eleanor, you okay?” Emma asked. She wheeled her chair in front of them. His grip on her arm softened. “Eleanor? You’re not Alice Hennen?” “No. She’s my sister.” She pulled her arm away from him. “Not that it’s any of your business.” The man looked from Eleanor to Emma and back again. “My apologies, I’ve made a mistake.” He bowed his head slightly, turned on his heel and disappeared into the

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crowd. “Wow,” Emma said. “Where can I get one of those?” Eleanor knew she was missing something. She leaned down to Emma’s level. “Was that the man who was with Alice?” Emma shook her head. “No. He was even taller than this guy. And his hair was lighter and shoulder length. But two of them in one night. I gotta come to more of these. I thought only old, rich people came to these things. Boy was I wrong.” Alice was in some kind of trouble. She could feel it. And the only person who knew about it had walked away. She pushed through the crowd after him. Cursing her five-foot-five height, she hopped as high as she could, trying to see over the heads around her. Not caring how stupid she looked, she climbed onto a chair and searched the room. Through the curious faces looking her way, she saw the stranger heading for the door. “Hey,” she yelled. Her voice was lost in the general volume. She jumped down and pushed her way after him. When she caught up with him on the veranda, it was her turn to grab his arm. Eleanor had no idea how it happened. One second she was reaching for his arm, and the next, she was spinning around to end in the circle of his arms with the breath being squeezed out of her. “Damn,” he growled in her ear. The arms loosened and let her go. She teetered around to face him. He looked furious. “Don’t ever sneak up on a man like that. You could end up hurt, or worse.” He bent down, picked up a coin from the pavement and walked away from her. “Wait,” she called after him. He kept walking. “Please, wait.” The stranger froze with his back to her. She was afraid to go to him. Afraid he would think she was sneaking up on him again. His broad shoulders slumped. He shook his head and slowly turned to her. She watched the anger leave his face. “What would you have of me?” he asked. “What was all that back there? Is Alice in trouble?” “That depends.” “On what?” “What manner of woman is your sister?” Eleanor sighed. It wasn’t the first time she’d had to explain Alice to someone. She always found it difficult. How do you explain goodness and purity without sounding like a naїve fool? If she did manage to get it right, people never believed her. Alice had to be experienced, not explained. She said simply, “She’s a good, kind person.” “I thought as much.” He walked up to her. “Everything will be fine, Miss Hennen.

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Your sister is probably waiting for you back there.” He nodded toward the restaurant. “I suggest you go back inside.” “But who are you looking for? And why did you think Alice knew where he was?” “It’s best you don’t know.” “Look, Mister.” Her finger poked his chest. “My sister has been missing for almost two hours after last being seen with the man you’re looking for. It’s best you tell me exactly what you’re doing here and who the man with my sister is.” He took her arms again, gently this time. As soon as he touched her, the anger she felt calmed. “If your sister is missing, I will find her for you. You have my word.” He tucked a curl behind her ear. “You are the singer, the face behind the voice.” Eleanor felt it again. A connection, a familiarity. She licked her lips nervously. The movement drew his attention to her mouth. Heat flooded his eyes. She recognized that look. It was the look a man gives a woman when he’s about to kiss her. Her heart sped up as his head lowered. With their height difference, he had a lot of ground to cover. Halfway to her lips, he stopped. The puzzled look was back. Shaking his head, he dropped his arms and stepped back. “I must go.” His voice was husky. Disappointment flooded through her. She wanted his lips on hers. Wanted it so much it frightened her. “Who are,” she started, but he was walking away. “No, wait,” she called after him. He turned and held her gaze. What she saw in those eyes made her step back. Pain, longing and need shot out from his eyes at her. He looked so sad, so lonely. She wanted to go to him, to comfort him. Surely, no one deserved to be so tortured. What could she say to take that look out of his eyes? Alice would know. He held her gaze for a long moment and then turned and walked away. Eleanor felt she’d missed an important opportunity. For what, she didn’t know. Trying to pull herself together, she stayed on the veranda, pacing. Finally, she went back into Sophia’s and wandered from room to room in a fruitless effort to find Alice. Deep inside, Eleanor knew she wasn’t there. A hand on her shoulder made her jump. “Oh sorry,” Grace said. “It’s just, well, it’s time to finish up the auction. You did say you’d take care of it. Right?” The last thing in the world she wanted to do right now was to get up in front of a bunch of people and play the happy hostess. But no matter what had happened, Alice would want her to finish up the evening. The clinic needed the money. “Let’s get this over with,” she said. An hour later, the party had wound down to a few people the wait staff were ushering out the doors. The little group of searchers was once again at the piano. “Alice won’t be happy,” Grace said. “We didn’t make as much as we usually do.” “That’s because she wasn’t here,” Andy said. “I’ve never seen anyone like her. She

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could turn Dracula into a teetotaler.” Eleanor turned to Bobby. “Did you find out anything?” “Just what you would expect. People remember seeing her at the beginning of the evening, but not after. The last time Mrs. Montgomery remembers seeing her she was with,” Bobby imitated Mrs. Montgomery’s throaty alto, “an absolutely gorgeous hunk of a man. She remembered because she wanted Alice to introduce them and was quite disappointed when it didn’t happen.” Bobby turned to Eleanor. “How about you? Did you find out anything?” “No,” Eleanor lied. She didn’t know why she decided not to tell Bobby and the others about the stranger. She would examine her reasons later, when she was alone and could think things through. The head waiter came over to them. “We’re ready to close up for the night. We could stay open for a while longer if you’d like.” “No thanks,” Eleanor said. Turning to the group around the piano, she tried to sound normal. “I don’t think there’s any reason to hang around here waiting. Alice would know it’s over by now. I’m sure she’s at home with a headache or something.” Grace’s face flushed. “Could I get a ride home from someone? Alice picked me up. I need to stop by the bank and put the money in the night depository. I get nervous carrying this much money around.” The two doctors looked everywhere but at Grace. “I’ll take you,” Bobby said. Grace’s face turned an even deeper shade of red as she looked at her shoes. “Oh, ah…thanks,” she said, “if it’s not too much trouble?” “No trouble at all.” Bobby gave Eleanor a look at odds with what he’d said. “Can I talk to you before you go, Bobby? It’ll only take a second, Grace.” She pulled Bobby away from the others. “Where do you think Alice is? Should I call the police or something?” Bobby’s face hardened. “I think it’s obvious what happened,” he said. “She went off with the hot guy. Just because she’s never done it before doesn’t mean she didn’t tonight. Alice has a right to be with whoever she wants. She’s not married or…anything.” “I don’t know, Bobby, this doesn’t feel right.” “Come on, Ellie, stop treating her like she’s not human. She went off to get laid. If you call the police, you’ll only embarrass her. She’s a big girl, leave her alone.” “Okay, okay, maybe I’m overreacting. You’re probably right. She wouldn’t want me to make a fuss over this. If she’s out with that man, it would only embarrass her.” After they walked away, with Grace still looking at her shoes, Andy and Kenny moved closer to Eleanor. “I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about,” Kenny said. “Absolutely,” Andy added. “She’s probably at home waiting for you.”

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“I’m sure you’re right,” she said with as much false confidence as she could muster. Driving home, Eleanor’s mind raced. Something felt wrong. Alice would never leave Grace to run a benefit. She would never walk away from all that potential money. And who was that man she was with? Handsome men never had any influence over her. She always looked beneath for the beauty within. Not that Alice dated much. The few relationships she’d had always ended the same way. Eventually, the man would end it, saying she was too good for him. Eleanor had always thought it would take a very special man not to be threatened by Alice’s absolute honesty and goodness. Her heart sank as she pulled into their driveway. No lights on in the house. Alice wasn’t there. She hurried inside to make sure. “Al, are you here?” she yelled from the front door. Silence answered her. “What should I do?” she said aloud. She wanted to get back into her car and try to find Alice, but where should she start? Eleanor settled down to do the thing she hated most—wait. Curling up in the easy chair closest to the door, she hoped and prayed this would be the first time Alice had behaved inappropriately. This thought made her feel a little better. If Alice was with that man, then Eleanor would get to be the disappointed sister for once. That would be so sweet.

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Chapter Two Eleanor woke with a start. Something was wrong, but her mind couldn’t focus. Why was she sleeping in this chair? If she’d fallen asleep watching TV again, she better get upstairs before Alice saw her. Last night’s events came rushing back. Jumping up out of the chair, she took the stairs two at a time, calling her sister’s name at the top of her lungs. She stopped outside Alice’s bedroom door and peered in. The bed hadn’t been slept in. Wide awake now, she ran back down the stairs, grabbed the phone and called Bobby. “This better be Angelina Jolie,” a tired, cranky voice said. “Bobby, it’s Eleanor.” Panic made her voice higher than usual. “Alice didn’t come home last night.” “Are you sure?” Bobby asked, sounding more alert. “Her bed hasn’t been slept in and anyway, I was waiting up for her right by the front door. This is not like her. Alice has never had a one-night stand in her life. Something’s wrong, I know it. What do you think I should do?” she screamed into the phone. “Okay, Ellie, okay,” Bobby said. “You have to calm down a little to start and stop screaming. I think you split my left eardrum. Go easy will you? It’s six in the morning and I haven’t even smelled a cup of coffee.” “I’m sorry. I’m just so worried.” She managed to get her voice under control but her emotions were still shaky. “Look,” Bobby said. “Let me get a cup of coffee and a shower and I’ll come over. We can make a plan of action. All right?” He’s such a man, she thought. Plan of action, what does that mean? Men always have to make some kind of plan. Plan of action, plan of attack, contingency plan, plan A, plan B. Why can’t they decide what to do and do it? Why does there always have to be a summit? “Okay,” she said, “but please hurry.” As she hung up the phone, a sense of dread flooded through her. Oh God. This is the same feeling she’d had when she’d found out about her Dad’s cancer. She stood rooted to the spot, paralyzed with fear. Her breath came in shallow gasps and her heart raced. She was on her way to an A-one panic attack. “Stop it. This is not getting you anywhere.” Concentrating on her breathing, she used the relaxation technique she’d learned in her theatre classes. Start at the bottom of your body and work your way up, relaxing each body part as you go. It took a little longer than usual, but when she finished she was breathing normally and could think clearly again. “Now keep moving,” she told herself firmly.

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Back upstairs, she showered, brushed her teeth and dressed. Whenever she slowed down, the panic started to creep back up. She went downstairs to brew some coffee. A clear head was what she needed and coffee was her one addiction. Drinking the first cup, she paced and watched out the front window for Bobby’s car. Her mind strayed to the stranger. She wouldn’t mention him to Bobby. If she did, it would jeopardize the promise he’d given her about finding Alice. She didn’t know how she knew that, she just did. The stranger was her ace-in-the-hole. But it was all off if she told anyone. The quiet of the house hurt her ears. When she and Alice had moved in after their parents’ deaths, it had felt so comfortable, so right. It wasn’t just a house, it was her good friend. Looking out the window, she saw the spot where her father had practiced sword fighting with her when she had the lead in Peter Pan in the sixth grade. On the porch were the scars in the wood from where Alice had set up complicated traps designed to catch fairies in the hope that their pixie dust could get Emma out of her wheelchair. Every place you looked and every step you took had a memory attached to it. Tired of pacing, she went outside and got the mail out of the blue mailbox with its bright yellow hen on a nest for the handle. With a last name of Hennen, her mother had taken to collecting hens. Hen dishes, hen towels, hen cookie jars, hen wallpaper. She even called the house The Roost. “It could be worse,” her father had always said. “My best friend in high school was Augie Butt. Just think what this house would have looked like then.” Bobby’s red Mustang pulled into the driveway and she raced to meet it. Without a word he took her into his arms. “Thanks so much for coming,” she said into his shoulder. It felt so good to be held. “Want come coffee?’ she asked. “Oh all you’ve got,” Bobby said with a smile, following her into the house. They settled at the kitchen table, fresh mugs of coffee—hen and rooster—in front of them. “What do you think?” she asked. “Last night I…wasn’t thinking clearly. It took me by surprise, Alice leaving like that but I’ve had time to think it through. If it were anyone else, I’d say relax. She’ll be back when the passion dies down, but this is Alice. She’s never been one for casual sex. At least not that I’ve known about. She’d never get so swept up by a man that she’d forget her responsibilities. And that’s what happened last night. She walked away from money she could have used to help people. I can’t see her doing that. The other thing that bothers me is she left without telling anyone. A very inconsiderate, un-Alicelike thing to do.” Bobby sighed, gave his face a rub and refilled his cup. “So, what I’m trying to say is, I think there’s cause for concern.” She gave him her best exasperated look. “Nice of you to catch up. So do you think I should call the police?”

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Bobby shook his head. “I don’t know. Don’t you have to wait forty-eight hours before you can file a missing persons report?” “Forty-eight hours.” She got up and paced. “Anything could happen in forty-eight hours. She’s been missing for twelve already. We can’t sit around for thirty-six hours with our fingers crossed. Come on, we have to think of something.” She stopped pacing. “Her car. Why didn’t I think of this last night?” Bobby got up from his side of the table and took over her pacing. “Right, we’ll check to see if her car is still at the restaurant. By that time, the clinic will be open and we can see if she shows up for work. If she doesn’t, then we’ll go to the police station in person and see what we can do there.” “All right.” She felt better now that they were doing something. “I’ll leave a note in case she shows up. You get her spare keys from the junk drawer. If her car is still there, you can drive it back here.” “Eleanor, wait a second. Before we do anything, we need to talk.” Bobby looked at her strangely. “We don’t have time for a heart-to-heart right now. We have to get moving.” “Listen, we’re friends, right?” He took her arm. “Good, old friends.” Eleanor didn’t like where this was going. “You know we are.” “Before we go out there, you have to promise me something.” “You know I hate promising before I know what the promise is.” “Promise me you won’t do anything stupid.” “What do you mean ‘anything stupid’?” Bobby let go of her arm and ran a hand through his hair. “You know exactly what I mean. Don’t go running off by yourself on some half-baked idea. Don’t put yourself in danger. Don’t accuse anyone without proof. That kind of anything stupid.” She thought of a few good retorts but didn’t have the energy for a fight. And why fight with the one person who was helping her? She did have a history of getting in trouble because she didn’t stop to think things through. “All right, all right, I’ll behave, I promise. Are you done acting like my dad now? Can we go?” Three minutes later they were out the front door.

***** Why did it have to be fall? It was difficult enough to move stealthily through a forest, but it was almost impossible with a carpet of dried leaves beneath your feet. Jacob took another tentative step. The sound of his boot smashing its way through the leaves on the ground sounded like an avalanche. Only a few more steps and he’d be in the pine tree stand. Pine needles weren’t noisy. The night was crisp and clear with a full moon that gave enough light to see 21

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without his flashlight. Shadows fell all around him in various shapes of tree branches. Huge towering oaks, thin spindly birches and spooky willows all danced around him as he walked. He took a deep breath of fresh, clean air. It invigorated him. The air smelled of trees and cool earth and somewhere nearby a fire burned. A gentle breeze brushed against his face. It was good to be out in the open again. When he was out like this, he could imagine himself young again and out on a hunt with his father and brothers. No cares and no worries, other than who would get the first deer. Family. His mind strayed to the woman at the party. Eleanor. Why did he keep thinking of her? He couldn’t deny it, something had happened when he touched her. He’d felt some inner pull or connection. Her sky blue eyes, strawberry blonde hair and luscious lips kept flashing into his thoughts. He couldn’t believe he’d almost lost control and kissed her. The impulse had been so strong, almost overpowering. Being with her had made him long for things he’d put aside years ago. Love, family and children. That life was not for him. But something about the woman had made it seem possible. Taking a deep breath, he tried to focus. This wasn’t the time for fruitless musing. His boot sent another avalanche of sound crashing into the night. He had to be cautious. He didn’t know what kind of security was set up around the estate. There would be no dogs. They hated dogs, and Jacob thought he knew why. Dogs were too inherently decent an animal. It was hard to corrupt a dog, and if you did, you could never trust them not to turn on you. A dog gone bad stayed bad. In the pine trees now, he could move faster. Reaching the crest of the hill, he looked down at the small valley beneath him. A mansion sat on the edge of a lake. From Jacob’s viewpoint, he could see the front of the house. A three-story Tudor with a large center section and two smaller wings on either side. A circular drive led off into the woods to the main road, almost a mile away. Crouching down beneath a pine, he looked though his binoculars. He studied the perimeter of the house. No sign of life. Only the outside floodlights were on. It looked deserted. Constantine had to be here. He’d tracked him diligently. Deciding to take a closer look, he was about to get up when he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He sank back down underneath a tree limb and froze. Less than fifty yards away, two men came out of the trees. Each had a highpowered rifle hitched on his shoulder. They were dressed in camouflage gear like any hunter you saw in this part of the country. Something about the way they moved said combat rather than hunting to Jacob’s trained eye. These men were professionals. A conversation was going on between them, but he was too far away to make it out. They separated suddenly, one to the left and the other to the right. No chance to get closer to the house now. It was too light with too much open ground between him and the house. Plan B, he decided. He would come at the house

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from the water. After waiting five minutes, he left his hiding place. Moving even more quietly now, he retraced his steps, away from the men with the guns. An hour later he rowed across the water in a small canoe he had borrowed from a cottage on the far side of the lake. The moon had set and he used the lights from the estate as a guide. From the sound that carried across the water, Jacob knew there was a party going on. Quite a change from the other side of the house, which had given the carefully staged deserted look. When he was as close as he could get without being seen from shore, he looked through his binoculars. One sweep told him this was the right place. He hadn’t really believed it could be happening, but the proof was right in front of him. Watching carefully, he memorized faces and the ground plan of the house, planning, absorbing as much knowledge as possible. The whole back of the house was lit up. From his viewpoint it looked like a multiple-screen nightmare. Each window had a different drama going on and he noted who was in them and what they were doing. What he saw in some of the rooms sickened him. It never ceased to amaze him the depths people would sink to in search of entertainment. He’d just lowered the binoculars when a flash of color from the left wing caught his eye. He focused in on a woman standing alone on a balcony. She gazed out over the water, her expression serene and happy. Something about her said innocence. What was someone like her doing here? He focused in tighter. She was beautiful, with the most vivid green eyes he had ever seen. He’d seen this woman before, but where? A missing persons poster at the gas station flashed into his mind. The green-eyed woman was Alice Hennen. Should he try to get her away? The thought of this innocent, sweet-faced woman being drawn into any of the dramas within the lighted windows made him want to beach his canoe, charge the house and rescue her, doing serious bodily harm to anyone who got in his way. Digging an oar into the water, he sent the canoe twenty feet closer to shore. He looked back over the windows. No, wait, he couldn’t risk being discovered now. Not when he knew where they were. He would have to come back for her. The important thing was he had found them. Turning the canoe around, he headed back across the lake. Now the real fun could start.

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Chapter Three It was exactly fifty hours and sixteen minutes since Alice had gone missing. Eleanor had been at the police station last night at six-thirty sharp. You didn’t have to wait forty-eight hours anymore to report a missing person, but unless you saw that person being abducted, you had to wait twenty-four. She’d brought everything she could think of to help the police in their investigation. Missing persons posters, Alice’s address book, the fundraiser’s guest list, the Rolodex from the clinic and a sketch of the man Alice had been seen talking to she’d finessed out of Mrs. Montgomery. Luckily, Mrs. Montgomery was a passable portrait artist. Eleanor had stared at the picture for hours. Emma and the girls had been right, he was gorgeous. It was a pencil drawing, but Mrs. Montgomery said he was fair, blond hair, blue eyes, broad-shouldered, slim hips, about six-foot-two, in his early thirties. The police had taken all of her information and, now that the twenty-four hours had passed, opened a case file and assigned two detectives from the missing person squad. The two male detectives, Farmer and Comstock, had grilled Eleanor for over an hour. Did Alice have any boyfriends, enemies, stalkers? Did she have any money? Could there be a ransom raised, if needed? Who gets her money if she dies? Where were their parents? Finally, with the routine questions exhausted, detective Comstock asked her what she thought had happened to her sister. “I don’t know,” she said. “I really haven’t a clue. You have to understand, I’ve never met anyone who disliked my sister, let alone wanted to harm her. We have to rule out this was done as retribution for something Alice did. It’s just not possible. I guess that’s what scares me the most. It has to be random, you know, wrong place, wrong time kind of thing. And that makes it much harder, doesn’t it? No planning, no trail, just grab somebody and run. How on earth will we ever find her?” she ended, almost in tears. Detective Comstock looked at her kindly. “You let us worry about finding her. We need to know if anything else occurs to you, no matter how small or insignificant you think it is.” Too choked up to talk, Eleanor nodded. Comstock picked up Alice’s picture. “She’s a beautiful woman. I’ve never seen eyes so green. Is it a trick of the photograph?” Another one bites the dust. Like every other male who came into Alice’s sphere, the detective was smitten. “No, that’s her natural eye color. Mom said a leprechaun kissed

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Alice’s eyes when she was a baby and turned them that color.” Eleanor always wondered where she’d been when the leprechaun had been around. “What else can you tell me about her? Does she have any hobbies that take her outside the home?” “No, she doesn’t have time. Besides running the clinic, she volunteers for about every charity in town. She’s always dashing off to some fundraiser or homeless shelter.” Comstock shook his head. “You don’t usually see that in such a young woman. Why does she do it? How come she’s not out running around with a boyfriend, enjoying herself?” Eleanor sighed. Here she was again, trying to explain Alice. “She’s always been this way. When we were little, Alice’s favorite game was ‘helping dolls’. She would line up her dolls in a row and ask each of them what they needed to be happy today. One would get a sip of water, the next a kiss on the cheek, the next got to wear her favorite dress, and so on down the line until every one was taken care of. She’s still playing the same game. The dolls have changed, but her philosophy has stayed the same. Find out what people need and get it for them.” Noticing Detective Comstock’s skeptical look, she threw up her hands. “I know, I know. Sounds too good to be true. But the amazing thing is, it usually works. Very few people go away from my sister unchanged. That’s why it can’t be anyone who knows her. Nobody would hurt her. They couldn’t…they just…” Tears started and she hid them by rubbing her face. Comstock patted her on the shoulder. “You look beat. Why don’t you go home and try to get some sleep. We’ll call you if we find anything.” On her way home, she’d started putting up missing persons posters. After a sleepless night, she and Bobby had used the day to get everyone at the clinic organized and searching. She left Bobby with the volunteers so she could zip home to check messages and grab a shower. She almost missed the note taped to her front door. If the envelope hadn’t blown in the wind as she pushed the door open, she would have missed it. Looking down, she saw her name written in a stylized hand, in the exact center of a royal blue envelope. What now? she thought, as she snatched the envelope from the door and went inside. It was so quiet. This wonderful house that had been her friend for so long stood still and empty, as if accusing her. A voice in her mind said, Where is she, Eleanor, why haven’t you found her yet? Hurry, before it’s too late. It wasn’t her place of refuge anymore. The house looked so normal. She kept expecting to see Alice coming out of the kitchen with a big bowl of popcorn for movie night. Remembering the envelope in her hand, she tore it open. At first she didn’t register what the note said. Reading it through a second time, the words finally penetrated and her blood ran cold. Dear Miss Hennen,

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I know where your sister is. If you would come to the address listed below at ten this evening, I will pass this information on to you. Please, come alone. Do not contact the police. I will know if you do. D.

Eleanor threw the note down on the table as if it had burned her. Thoughts flooded through her head. What this some kind of sick joke? Who would do something like this to her? Could it possibly be on the level? What if this was from the person who took Alice? Should she call the police? Bobby? Was it from her stranger? Could he have found Alice? But why not identify himself? Didn’t he know this would scare her? Her eyes flew to the rooster clock on the wall. It was 9:20. That gave her forty minutes to decide what to do and get to the address. It would take thirty minutes to drive there. She started pacing. If she messed this up she’d never forgive herself. If she went without telling anyone and got killed or kidnapped, no one would ever know. If she turned it over to Comstock and Farmer, word could get out and whoever sent this could get angry and hurt Alice. She made her decision. She’d go alone, but leave Bobby a note explaining everything. As a precaution, she’d take her mace and keep a hand on it in her pocket at all times. Sitting at the desk, she wrote the note to Bobby. Her hands shook so badly she had to start twice. Taking the note to the kitchen, she taped it to the first place Bobby went in her house—the coffee maker. She thought about taking a sweater, but it was a warm October night and she would be inside. Making sure her mace was in her purse, she paused at the door, took one more look around her safe living room, and wondered if she’d ever see it again. Shaking off her rising panic, she hurried out to her car. She had trouble finding the address. The letter said 2348, but the house numbers stopped at 2346. Finally, out of desperation, she parked her car at 2346 and started walking south. The houses in this part of town were on a lake. A gentle breeze brought the smell of the water and she could hear the waves, but she couldn’t see the lake. High fences and houses blocked the view. People who had enough money to live right on the lake liked their privacy. Noticing a small drive she’d missed from her car, she walked down it. About five hundred feet in, she spotted a house. This had to be it. The house looked, well, creepy. A porch ran along the entire front of the house. It had columns spaced at intervals between the windows. The columns were covered with leafy ivy that waved in the wind, like little fingers beckoning her closer. The roof of the porch served as a balcony for the floor above. The only light came from a window at the far right. 26

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Eleanor felt cold suddenly and wished she’d brought that sweater. Turning her back on the house, she reached into her purse, took out her mace and transferred it to her pants pocket. Feeling like an idiot, she practiced drawing it out of her pocket, like an Old West gunfighter. Satisfied with her speed, she turned back to the house. Her body twitched nervously as she tried to work up her nerve. She’d counted on the house having close neighbors. Close enough to hear her scream. This house was so far removed from the street, no one would hear her. Finally, she said a quick prayer to St. Jude and walked up to the front door. The bell looked broken so she knocked. No one answered. Knocking harder, she heard a click and the door slowly swung open. Lovely. This is how all the horror movies start. Cautiously, she stepped into an old-fashioned entryway. A chandelier hung from a high ceiling. An open staircase led to the second floor. Two closed doors were on the left side of the room. On the right, a hallway led to the room with the light. Fingering the mace in her pocket, she started toward the light. She felt the room before she saw it. It somehow invaded her other senses before her eyes. It felt bad. Really bad. It reminded her of when she was little and her father was waiting in the living room to punish her. She’d known what was waiting for her in that room and it wasn’t good. Her heart, which had been at high idle, kicked into overdrive. It took everything she had to keep her feet moving toward the open door. Stopping at the threshold to listen, a line from a movie, “It’s quiet in here, it’s too quiet,” flashed through her mind and she giggled. Great. I’m more scared than I’ve ever been in my life. I can feel my heartbeat in my teeth, and I get the giggles. I’ll probably still be laughing when my heart gets ripped out. She could leave. Just turn and walk away. Her rational side was telling her to do just that. The whole setup sucked anyway. But then what? Alice would still be missing. At least this way she was doing something instead of sitting at home crossing her fingers. Please God. Don’t let me get us both killed. Inhaling deeply, she took a few steps into the room, being careful to keep her back to the door. The first thing she noticed was the temperature. It felt like walking into air conditioning on a hot summer day. As she backed out of the room, the temperature changed back to normal. What the hell? Reaching her arm into the room, she felt the cold air again. There was definitely an invisible line between hot and cold. Her sense of unease increased as she forced herself back into the room. Her skin started to cool at an alarming rate. She hadn’t realized she was so hot and sweaty. Terror will do that to you. Was it her imagination or was her skin starting to steam? It was as if she was creating an atmosphere around her body. All that cold air rushing up against her hot skin made her shiver and she again regretted not bringing her sweater. Sweeping a glance around the room, she gasped with amazement. It was a library. She loved libraries. How she envied people rich enough to set aside one whole room for

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storing and reading books. Floor-to-ceiling bookcases lined every wall, with books crammed in every which way. As she looked around the room, she noticed every surface had books stacked up on it. There were books piled in an impossible tower on a low table in front of a red velvet sofa. The sofa itself had books covering one side of the cushions. A matching velvet chair was set at an angle from the sofa with an end table next to it with large volumes of what looked like encyclopedias weighing it down. To the left of the chair, there was a large fireplace with a mantle that had books wedged between two smiling frog bookends. The frogs were winking at her. The only other furniture in the room was a cherry wood desk and chair set against the far wall. The desk itself was bare. No books, papers, pencils or files. Just a stained glass lamp with dragonfly shapes connected to form the multicolored shade. The colored light coming from the lamp cast warm shades of amber and green across the room in contrast to the cold air. The light didn’t reach into the corners of the room and she tried to peer into the darkness on her right. It was too dark to see into but there was room enough for someone to hide. If fact, there was room enough for ten people to be hiding in the shadows beyond the light from the dragonfly lamp. Just as her heart was starting to slow, a voice came out of the shadow by the fireplace. “I am so glad you came,” it said. It was not her stranger’s voice. Her fear increased. She’d been hoping he was behind all this. But the voice from the shadow in front of her had a different beauty. It was low, musical and very masculine. A voice-over voice if ever she heard one. The kind of voice that could sell anything. It drew her in. Watch it now, she told herself. She had a thing for voices. All her life she’d been falling in lust with men’s voices over the phone and on the radio, only to find that ninety-nine percent of the time, the reality of the whole package fell short of the voice. “I thought you would, you know. In fact, I have won the bet.” The voice washed over her again. This time she could make out he wasn’t from around here, at least not originally. British, with a touch of something else, but she couldn’t tell what. Something about the way he said “bet” made her think of Ireland. It bothered her, not being able to place the voice. She prided herself on her knowledge of dialects. It was how she made her living, after all. Being able to place someone within one hundred miles of where they grew up always gave her an advantage. It was a particularly good talent to have in bars. Try to pretend you were a wealthy Chicago suburbanite in town promoting your new line of economically-friendly lawn care products that might help change the face of the planet, and she had you. She knew, from your third or fourth word, you were a guy from the Iron Range, probably out of work, looking to get laid. She couldn’t place this accent though. No advantage here. Everything about this kept getting worse.

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She realized she’d been standing, staring into the corner. Come on, you idiot. Say something. “Where is my sister?” Her voice sounded odd—thin, high and trembling. Not at all like herself, and it took so much breath to get those four words out. “Ah yes,” the voice came back. “That would be your first question.” He stepped into the light. One glance told her this was one of the rare times when the face matched the voice. Her breath caught in her throat as every thought left her head. He didn’t seem real. His hair was the blue-black of the Superman comics. It fell to his shoulders in thick, silky waves. His mouth was set in a condescending smirk with full lips almost too red against his pale, flawless skin. But it was his eyes that captivated her. She could see very little white in them. They were dark blue, almost black, with huge pupils, as if they were dilated. There was something wrong with them, but God, they were beautiful. He towered over her, well over six feet with wide shoulders on a lean frame that tapered down to a slim waist and hips. Oh, God help me. I am in big trouble. Looking back up his body to his face, she saw the level of condescension had gone up a few degrees. His gaze said, “Yeah, I know I’m gorgeous. I know exactly what I’m doing to you. How boring.” Any hope of equal footing flew out the window. You can’t gape at someone with dumbfounded awe stamped all over your face and then pretend to be indifferent. His appearance did something to her, and he knew it. She tried to pull herself together. Come on, girl. Since when does a pretty boy rattle you this much? Oh all right, since when does a gorgeous, incredibly magnetic man rattle you so much? If he thinks he’s going to walk all over me because I’m smitten, then he doesn’t know Arnie’s little girl. The thought of her dad brought the whole horrible situation back into focus. Alice, where was she? Swallowing hard, she found her voice. “Your note said you knew where my sister was.” “That is correct,” he replied. “I know exactly where your sister is.” Something in Eleanor snapped. She advanced on him with all the pent-up frustration the last two days had been festering. “Where’s Alice? Is she here? Are you holding her in this house somewhere? If you’ve hurt her, I’ll kill you.” Her momentum carried her across the room. Grasping his T-shirt in her fists, she pulled his face down to her level and looked deep into his dark eyes. His face lost all expression. He had gone still. Her hands against his chest were getting very cold. It felt like putting your hands against a block of ice. You don’t notice the cold right away. It seeps in slowly but the temperature keeps going down until you are forced to jerk your hands away. The smell coming off him surrounded her. She couldn’t identify it. It wasn’t a bad smell, in fact, it was quite nice. It made her think of candlelit nights and lace and dancing under the moon. All the anger rushed out of her and she was left with a feeling 29

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of longing. For what, she didn’t know. Her hands hurt. Looking down, she expected to see them red and raw and was surprised they looked normal. What the hell is going on here? The pain shot up her wrists to her forearms. Letting go, she took a step back. As soon as she broke contact, the pain went away. When she looked back at him, her stomach lurched. Something about the way he looked at her screamed danger. Head down, he stared up at her between dark eyebrows, like an animal marking its prey. He was so still. The kind of stillness all predators have before they pounce. The cold was much worse than it had been by the door. Her mind reeled as she realized the cold came from him. The closer she got to him, the colder it became. “My God, what are you?” Her frightened voice seemed to bring him back to himself. His eyes lost their feral look and his chin came up. “Forgive me,” he said. “It has been a very long time since anyone has dared touch me in anger. I forgot myself.” He looked down at her hands. “The pain is momentary and has no lasting effects.” Eleanor wanted to run. Was it too late to get away? If she turned, could she make it to the door before he—what? Grabbed her from behind, or worse, somehow made it to the door before her. She decided not to give him the satisfaction. If this was it for her, she would meet it head-on, not running away like some wimpy pretty girl in a slasher movie. She had no idea what was going on here but the situation had not changed. If there was any chance this—thing—knew where Alice was, she had to stay and face him. For a few tense moments they stood, staring at each other. “I have upset you,” he said. “It was not my intention.” With a graceful sweep of his arm he indicated the couch. “Please, sit down. Would you like a glass of wine?” The thought of drinking anything this—whatever—offered, sickened her. What would be in the wine? Is this the way he’d caught her sister? Alice would never have refused. It would have been rude. “Are you having any?” He gave an elegant shrug. “I—” “Wait,” she said. “If you even think of saying ‘I never drink wine’, I am out of here. I’m not kidding. You can kill me on the way out, but at least I will stop being the butt of whatever sick joke is going on here.” “I have no intention of harming you.” “That’s not what your eyes were telling me a minute ago.” “I have already apologized for that,” he said with a sharp reproof in his voice. “And to answer one of your questions, I am having some wine. I have been sampling the local vintages. I was surprised to find them quite good. One does not think of Minnesota as a wine-producing area. I have a bottle of red open if you would care for any.” 30

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He held up a bottle of wine he produced from behind a pile of books on the end table. “That’s Alice’s favorite, but you probably knew that.” She noticed a catch in her voice. Seeing the bottle brought back so many memories of Alice with a glass in her hand, talking over the day with her. Eleanor felt her eyes mist over, she was very close to breaking down. “Please, Miss Hennen, could we start over?” His voice was gentle and calming. “My name is Damien Stewart. I am an investigator of sorts. I am in this part of the country on a case. Through my investigations, I have learned that your sister—” A noise behind her made her jump and twirl around. Two men entered the room. The first was no more than a boy. Seventeen or eighteen, at most. Short for a male, about her height, with flaming red hair that ballooned around his head in tight curls. Freckles dotted his face. Like so many boys his age, he was dressed in a loose fitting shirt, black T-shirt and impossibly oversized jeans. The other one was no boy. It was her stranger. “Ah shit,” the redhead said. “She came.” “As you can see, Michael,” Damien said from behind her. “I was explaining to Miss Hennen about the whereabouts of her sister, but perhaps I should start with introductions.” Damien stepped forward to Eleanor’s elbow and gestured toward the redhead. “Miss Hennen, may I introduce Michael Murray.” The redhead stuck out his hand. “Call me Mike. I sure wished you hadn’t shown up, no offense.” “None taken,” she managed to squeak out and took his hand. Chicago, she thought. He’s from the inner city. “Michael is my ward,” Damien said with the emphasis on Michael as opposed to Mike. “And I believe you have met my partner, Jacob Hastings.” His partner? What does that mean? She was not picking up gay vibes, but she’d been wrong before. And who has a ward anymore? What exactly was a ward? Jacob Hastings didn’t offer his hand or come any closer. He stood at the entrance of the room, blocking her way out. He gave her a nod and stared at her with those cool, gray eyes she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about. “Hey, Damien,” Mike said, “could you tone down the cold aura a few notches? My boys are halfway up to my bellybutton.” “Michael, try to remember there is a lady in the room,” Damien said. The room started to warm. Within a matter of seconds, it was comfortable. Eleanor looked at the three of them, suddenly very frightened. How did the temperature change? No one had gone near a thermostat. She was right. Somehow Damien Stewart was controlling the atmosphere in the room. “What is going on here?” Eleanor demanded. 31

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“Please, Miss Hennen, sit down,” Damien said, indicating the red velvet chair. She didn’t like the idea of sitting. For one thing, it took time to get up from a chair. It was much easier to start running from a standing position. For another, if she sat in the offered chair, Jacob Hastings would be behind her, out of her range of sight, and she wanted to keep all three of these men in full view. Compromising, she sat on the sofa. Mike flopped down in the chair she had refused and Damien perched elegantly on the sofa arm farthest from her. Hastings didn’t budge from the door. “As I was saying before the others arrived, Miss Hennen, we know where your sister has been taken,” Damien said. “She is being held at a secluded estate about sixty miles northeast of here.” “Is she all right?” “She was as of ten-thirty last night.” “How do you know?” “Because I saw her,” Jacob said. “She was standing on a balcony of the house I had under surveillance. I recognized her from the posters you put up everywhere.” “How can you be sure it was her?” “She has a distinctive eye color.” “Mr. Hastings, if you were so close you could see the color of her eyes, why on earth didn’t you get her away from there?” “Because she wouldn’t have come.” “What do you mean she wouldn’t have come? A stranger takes her against her will to a secluded area to do God knows what to her and you think she wouldn’t have taken the opportunity to get away? Besides, she must be half out of her mind with worry and fear and you left the decision up to her?” Eleanor rose and stomped over to him. “Why didn’t you grab her and run? What kind of an idiot are you?” He crossed his arms and leaned against the door jamb. “I’m the idiot who found your sister.” “Miss Hennen, please.” Damien stood up. “We asked you here to offer you our help.” “The only help I need from you is the address of the house where they’re holding my sister. The police can take it from there.” “I told you this was a waste of time,” Jacob said. “Please, Eleanor. May I call you Eleanor?” Damien asked. “Come back and sit down and I will explain the situation.” Eleanor quickly considered her options. She could leave, provided they let her, which she was not so certain of, go to the police and tell them about Mr. Stewart and his associates, assuming the police believed her, which seemed unlikely. Or, she could stay, risking bodily harm, listen to what he was offering and maybe find out where her sister

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was. Letting out a sigh, she headed back to the sofa. “I’m listening,” she said as she sat down. “There is truth in what Jacob said,” Damien began. “Your sister most likely would not have come away with him. To begin with, she does not know him. He is a stranger to her. She could think she would be going from the frying pan into the fire. Also, she may not think she is in any danger.” “What do you mean?” “I mean she may want to be exactly where she is.” “That’s impossible. Alice would never leave without telling me. She simply wouldn’t do that to me. And she wouldn’t leave the clinic to run itself. Too many people rely on her.” Damien smiled sadly. “Eleanor, you have to understand the man who took Alice is a very magnetic, extremely persuasive being. He may have convinced her going away with him was the right thing to do.” “Do you mean he hypnotized her?” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mike roll his eyes and snicker. Damien shot Mike a disapproving glance. “Yes, something like that. If you send the police to rescue Alice, she will simply tell them you are mistaken and she wants to be where she is. The police will do nothing, other than blame you for wasting their time. The next day, your sister will be taken to a new location and you will never see her again.” “Why did he pick Alice?” “Your sister is very special, is she not?” “Yes, she is, she—” Her voice choked and she couldn’t go on. Damien walked over and sat on the table in front of her. He took her hand in his. Expecting a cold jolt from his fingers, she was surprised when his hand felt warm against her skin. She usually didn’t like strangers touching her, but Damien’s hand was comforting. He looked deeply into her eyes. “Alice is not like other people,” he said. “There is something about the pureness of her soul that shines through for the world to see. She is a truly good person. There is an absence of evil in her. A saint, if you will. The man who took her is attracted to her for those reasons. He has made of his life such a living hell, your sister’s presence eases him. Think of it, Eleanor. If you live in constant excess and debauchery, causing pain and suffering to all those around you, would it not be wonderful to have a little oasis of goodness and purity you could turn to? Nothing is entirely evil. Even the worst of us longs for forgiveness now and then.” “How do you know all this?” “We are interested in this man for other reasons. Your sister is not the first person he has taken.” “What happened to the others?” 33

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“Eventually they became like him.” “How do you propose to get her away from him?” “I cannot tell you all the details now, Eleanor. What I can say is, we need you to accompany us tomorrow night. Our hope is you will be able to convince your sister to come away. We are counting on your close bond and sisterly love to win her back. Now, are you willing to come with us?” There were so many parts of this she didn’t understand. Who or what had taken her sister? Why would Alice choose to stay? What did Damien and Jacob want with him? Gathering her courage, she decided to take the bull by the horns, or the bat by the wings. “Answer one more question,” she said. “If I can.” “What are you?” “Ah.” He dropped her hand. “You will have to take my word that it is better if you do not know. For your own protection. If all goes well, we will bring away your sister tomorrow night and you will never see us again. It is best not to open any unnecessary doors.” “That’s it? That’s all you’re going to tell me?” “I am asking you to trust me, Eleanor. To trust all of us.” Trust him? Trust someone who could control the temperature in a room? Someone she suspected wasn’t human? Who had looked at her as if she were supper? And what about the other two? The boy’s first words at seeing her were to swear and wish she hadn’t come. And Jacob Hastings, despite what she’d felt between them at the fundraiser, had been shooting bad vibes at her from the doorway ever since he’d arrived. Trust this happy trio? Not likely. But aloud she said, “All right, I’ll come with you.” Damien was suddenly standing. Was that a trick of the light? One second he was sitting in front of her and the next he was standing. Eleanor could swear she hadn’t seen him move. “Excellent, excellent,” he said. “We will start from here tomorrow night at seven. Please dress for a cocktail party. We have been invited in.” Eleanor looked at him, surprised. “You mean he knows we’re coming?” “Why, yes,” he said brightly. “That is usually the easiest way in, is it not?” “But—“ “And now, if you will excuse us, Michael and I have some unfinished business. Jacob will escort you home.” Mike groaned. “Come on, Damien. It doesn’t have to be now, does it?” “Michael,” Damien said in a mocking tone, “do not tell me you are the type of gentleman who will welsh on a bet?” “Ah, hell,” Mike said. “Let’s get it over with.”

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Jacob came up to her. “Miss Hennen, shall we?” He gestured toward the door. Eleanor stood, angry. She thought she heard a mocking tone in Jacob’s voice but she started out the door anyway. Walking down the hall, she heard Damien say, “Believe me, Michael, this hurts me as much as it does you.” Eleanor shivered. What was he going to do to that boy? Something slipped over her shoulders. Swinging around, she glared at Jacob and then realized it was his jacket on her shoulders. He looked embarrassed. “You looked cold. Was I wrong?” Eleanor felt like an idiot. “No,” she said sheepishly, “you weren’t wrong.”

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Chapter Four The tingle started deep inside her. No tingling, she told herself firmly. Stop the tingling. But his jacket felt wonderful against her skin, the lining still warm from his body. It smelled of pine trees, warm leather and man. It felt as if she were enveloped in his essence. Acutely aware of the man behind her, she led the way to her car. Thinking it best to get away, she turned to face him. “Look, you don’t have to see me home. I can manage to drive myself. Thanks anyway.” Reluctantly, she shrugged out of the jacket. He reached up, settled the jacket firmly back on her shoulders and turned her to face him. Using his hold on the jacket, he drew her closer. “Look,” he said, “it’s best you understand a few things from the start. You will do whatever Damien or I tell you. No questions. No arguments. Some of the things we ask you to do may seem stupid or unimportant, but you will do them anyway. It’s not only your sister’s life that’s in danger. It’s all our lives and the lives of people you don’t even know about. Damien told me to escort you home. He told you to let me escort you. Now give me your keys.” He let go of the lapels and she fell back against the car. He reached over to help her back up, but she shook off his hand. She opened her purse. “I’ll drive.” “No,” Jacob said in a patient tone. “You still don’t understand.” He held out his hand. “Give me your keys.” Eleanor thought about the mace in her pocket. It would give her so much pleasure to let this pompous, macho ass have a shot in the face. She thought better of it after looking into his determined eyes. Now was not the time to challenge this guy. Not alone in the dark night. Digging the keys out of her purse, she handed them over. “How will you get back?” “No questions, remember?” “Fine.” Walking around to the passenger’s side, she was surprised to find Jacob had followed her. He unlocked the door and held it open. Trying to keep the tingle down, she kept as much distance as possible as she scrambled in. He startled her when he bent over, reached down and tucked her trailing purse strap inside the car. My, my, she thought, what a gentleman. A nervous flutter ran through her. She would be alone with this man for at least half an hour. It was a small car, too small for that big a man. Eleanor hid a smile as he tried to fit behind the wheel. Sometimes being five-footfive was fun. He made an exasperated noise, fumbled for the release and moved the seat back as far as it would go.

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Once they were on the road she tried again. “Can I please ask some questions?” “You can ask,” Jacob said, implying he wouldn’t answer. “What is Damien?” “Damien gave you an answer. You won’t get anything else out of me.” “But don’t you think it will help if I know what I’m walking into tomorrow night?” “That’s where the whole ‘no questions, no arguments’ plan comes in.” Eleanor thought for a minute and then asked in a soft voice, “Would you please tell me more about when you saw my sister?” Something in her voice made Jacob reconsider and he answered her. He told her everything he could remember about last night. The mansion, the men with guns, the lake and her sister. He left out certain details, but hopefully she would never find out about those. When he finished, she was silent for a long time. “Thank you,” she finally said in that same soft voice. Jacob didn’t like that voice. It was full of fear and hopelessness and Eleanor didn’t strike him that way. It made him want to comfort her and now was not the time for comforting. He thought of something that would rile her up. “I have to give you something. It will probably make you mad and I want you to remember we’re in a car, okay?” Eleanor looked at him wearily. “All right.” Jacob pulled something out of his jean pocket and handed it to her. It was the note she’d written to Bobby and left taped to her coffee maker. He started counting to himself. One…two…three… “You went into my house?” she screamed at him. “How dare you go in my house without my permission. Who do you people think you are? You ask me to trust you and then you pull something like this.” She started choking the note in her clenched fists. “AHHHHH,” she screamed in frustration and turned to him. “In a car, remember?” Jacob said calmly. “How did you know? What? Did you just go in and ransack my house?” “Damien told me exactly where the note would be. Remember, he told you in his note he would know if you tried to tell anyone.” “What is he?” Eleanor screamed. “Now that would be telling,” he said with a smile. At least she doesn’t sound hopeless or afraid anymore. It took Eleanor a few minutes to get back under control. “Answer one question.” “If I can,” Jacob said, mirroring Damien’s answer to the same question earlier. “What was the bet?” “What bet?” “The bet, the bet, you know. Damien said he’d won a bet when he saw me. Mike 37

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said he wished I hadn’t come. Damien said he and Mike had unfinished business and talked about welshing on a bet. I know the bet had something to do with me. What was it?” “All right. But don’t tell Mike I told you. Mike bet Damien you wouldn’t come. He thought you would be too selfish or afraid. He sees the human race as a group of selfish, out-for-number-one morons. Damien said your love for your sister would override everything else. He said you were the kind of person who would do anything to save someone you loved.” “What’s the payoff?” Eleanor asked, not sure she wanted to know. “Mike has to read two chapters of Moby Dick aloud to Damien. He’s helping Mike catch up on his reading skills.” Eleanor was confused. She didn’t understand these men at all. Just when she thought she was starting to, they threw her another curve. Moby Dick. What next? They pulled into her driveway before she realized she was close to home. She didn’t wait for him to open her door, but hopped out quickly. “Thanks for escorting me home. Not that I needed escorting, you understand. I’ve been escorting myself for quite some time.” “What a shame,” he said, looking deeply into her eyes. That tingle was back. This man was truly dangerous. His voice and eyes were weapons. She pushed back the tingle and walked to the front door. When she turned to hand him his jacket, she saw Bobby’s Mustang coming down her street. “Oh God. There’s Bobby. I don’t want him involved in this. Who do I tell him you are?” Jacob shrugged into his jacket and looked down the street at Bobby’s car. “Boyfriend?” “No best friend.” He turned back to Eleanor and looked into her eyes. A mischievous grin spread over his face. She took that as a bad sign. His hand rose to cup her cheek. He slid his thumb across her bottom lip as his other arm pulled her to him. His eyes followed the path of his thumb as it moved slowly back and forth across her lip. The tingle she’d been feeling turned into a flood of passion. She’d never felt anything like it. It was as if there was an invisible string from his thumb to her very center. Each gentle stroke sent waves of pleasure through her. He moved his thumb away and lowered his head. His tongue took over for his thumb. Gentle little licks, accentuated by nips from his teeth. Eleanor’s arms wrapped around his neck and she pulled him closer. His lips danced across hers, nibbling, sucking, teasing her mouth open. When his tongue slipped between her teeth, she tasted coffee and chocolate, two of her favorite things. He deepened the kiss, tightening his arms around her. She felt so many sensations it made her dizzy. The feel of his tongue sparing with hers, his hands

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rubbing up and down her back, his smell of leather and pine trees, the way his hard body pressed against hers, filled her senses to overload. What was happening to her? Did she care? No. Letting go, she plunged into the kiss, body and soul. He pulled away and set her back on her feet. Eleanor made a sound of protest before she could stop herself. “There,” he said, grinning and putting her keys in her hand. “That ought to give the two of you enough to talk about. Don’t be late tomorrow night.” He was halfway to the street when he stopped and turned back to her. “You don’t kiss like someone who’s been escorting themselves for a long time.” What? What? What just happened here? Her body was on fire. How could he make her feel like this and walk away as if nothing had happened? Before she could think of anything to say, Jacob was gone and Bobby was getting out of his car. “Where the hell have you been? Why the hell haven’t you answered your cell phone? And who the hell was that?”

***** Jacob walked the two blocks to where he had left his car when he and Mike had come to retrieve Eleanor’s note to Bobby. He’d left it because Damien said he would need it later. Damien always knew. Even now, after all these years, he still made Jacob uneasy sometimes. Unlocking the car, he slid in but didn’t start the engine. He shouldn’t have done that. It’s only going to cause trouble later. But Dear Lord, her mouth was sweet. He’d been watching that mouth all evening. A mouth like hers was made for kissing. He remembered his reaction when he’d walked into the room and first seen her. She had turned to them in alarm, eyes flashing. There had been something about her that touched him deeply. She’d faced down three men she didn’t know, in a situation she couldn’t possible fathom, all on the strength of the love for her sister. Over time he’d almost forgotten what that was like, the love of family. He’d had brothers and sisters once. The love he felt for them was still there, even if they were not. Time can blur some things, but not all. Why was he having these thoughts now? Sentimentality wasn’t something he could afford. Not with tomorrow night waiting for them. Time was running out. He couldn’t blow it now because some woman made him think of love and family. But what a woman. She had sprit and fire, and above all, courage. And she had given her lips to him so sweetly. No one had ever responded to him like that. It had taken every ounce of control he had to break away from her. It had been so long since he’d touched a woman. It wasn’t forbidden, he could have relationships if he wanted. He just didn’t see how it could possibly work. He could not ask a woman to share his life. Even if he did, it wouldn’t last. Sooner or later she would leave and he would be alone again. 39

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“Enough,” he said aloud. He had to get back and face Damien. He would know what had happened between Eleanor and him. He always knew.

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Chapter Five Eleanor awoke the next morning feeling like she hadn’t slept at all. All through the long night her thoughts had circled endlessly, rehashing her current situation. She’d thought about Alice and the man who had taken her. She’d thought about how wrong it felt lying to Bobby. She’d thought about Damien and what he could possibly be. But most of all, she’d thought about Jacob Hastings and his kiss. She felt guilty, thinking more about him and how he made her feel than about Alice and what she must be going through. She wasn’t inexperienced with men, but the lovers she’d had in the past hadn’t made her feel a fraction of what Jacob had with one kiss. Is he human? Did he have some sort of power that rendered him irresistible to women? Something in his voice, or saliva, maybe? Did it work like Love Potion Number Nine? Oh come on, Ellie. It was just a kiss. Don’t get so carried away. Pushing all thoughts out of her head, she got up to face her busy day. The list she’d made yesterday before she’d found Damien’s note was on her bedside table. First she had to call every person on the benefit guest list to ask if they had spoken to Alice that night. Next, Bobby had set up an interview with a television reporter to get the story of Alice’s disappearance on the local news. Then she had meetings with the clinic’s personnel to organize search parties. The printer had more posters ready to be picked up. And she would add to the list a call to Comstock and Farmer, to ask how the investigation was going. This all seemed irrelevant now, but there was a part of her that thought Damien and Company could be some wild hoax. She had to move forward as planned, for no other reason than to keep Bobby, the police and all of Alice’s friends out of whatever was going to happen tonight. Thinking about tonight made her stomach flutter. What had she gotten into? During the long night she had formed a theory—whatever Damien was, vampire, angel, or con artist, so was the man who was holding her sister. Or, if not exactly what Damien was, something very like him. Send a thief to catch a thief. The implications were staggering and she hadn’t had time to process them all. Say for one minute it was true, Damien is some kind of vampire. That meant vampires existed. And if vampires exist, what else was out there from myth and legend? She made up her mind to find out if Damien feared a cross. If he did, logically he feared what the cross stood for, and it would follow God was really out there watching over us. There would be proof. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? It really would be possible to be reunited with her parents. It could all be true. God, heaven, hell, all of it. Alice had always thought so. “Look around, Ellie,” she’d say. “Look at the sky, or 41

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the trees, or one petal of a flower. Look at a mother’s face when she is holding her child. Listen to that same child’s laughter when his mother makes a funny noise. God is all around us, Ellie, you just have to let Her in.” Eleanor had always envied Alice. Faith came naturally to her. Eleanor had to work at it. Since her parents’ deaths, she and God were at an impasse. She didn’t understand why death existed. Why would God give all that love, only to rip it so cruelly away? All that pain and suffering. For what? A sudden realization flashed though her mind. Vampires never die. Maybe vampires were what humans were before Eve and the apple. Just because the legends said vampires were evil and forsaken by God didn’t mean it was true. Wait. No use getting ahead of herself. She had no idea what Damien was. It was best to keep an open mind. All possibilities, including the con-man theory, were an option. So what should she bring tonight for protection? A cross? Silver? Garlic? The Bible? Condoms? Where did that come from? She was afraid she knew. Her mind had strayed back to Jacob and his kiss. “Stop right now,” she said, getting out of bed. It was time to start working on the list. Picking up a pencil, she added one more item. Decide what to wear to a cocktail party that might have monsters in attendance. No pressure. All through the long day, Eleanor’s mind kept returning to what waited for her in the evening. Although she kept busy, the hours crawled by. As she glanced at her watch for the hundredth time Bobby said, “You got someplace you have to be? Oh I know. You’ve got a hot date with that mystery man you won’t tell me about.” “I told you,” Eleanor said, trying her best to sound like she wasn’t lying. “He’s just a private detective I’m thinking about hiring.” “Riiiight.” Bobby put his hand on his hips and stood in front of her. “Everybody decides whether or not to hire a private investigator by locking lips. That was some job interview I saw. What are you going to do with him if he gets the job?” Eleanor got angry. “Just drop it, okay?” “Fine, fine,” Bobby said. “But if you’re up to something, and it endangers Alice in any way, you’ll have to answer to me. I know you, Eleanor. You’re not telling me something, and if Alice is hurt as a result, I will never forgive you.” Eleanor tried to tease him out of it. “Why, Bobby, could you possibly be jealous?” Bobby grabbed her shoulders and shook her. “Listen, this is Alice we’re talking about. If anything happens to her I’ll…” He looked at Eleanor with such anguish, she almost told him everything. Only the thought of him getting hurt stopped her. He let go and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry,” he choked out. “I… We can’t lose her. We just can’t. She’s been missing three days now and I’m afraid if we don’t find her soon…” He sank down on a chair and put his head in his hands. Eleanor looked at him, shocked. Was she blind, or what? How long had Bobby been

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in love with Alice? Does she feel the same about him? Kneeling next to Bobby, she held one of his hands. “We’ll find her. I promise you, Bobby, we will find her.” She stroked his hair back from his forehead. “Bobby, how long have you—” Bobby stood and cut her off. “Just drop it, will you?” I guess we finally found something we can’t talk about, she thought.

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Chapter Six At 6:55 Eleanor stood in front of the house with the creeping ivy. She remembered how frightened she’d been the previous night when she’d approached the door. Tonight, in contrast, she felt a nervous but pleasant excitement. Digging in her beaded bag, she took out her mirror for a last once-over. It always amazed her what carefully applied makeup could do. Satisfied that she hadn’t managed to smudge it on the drive over, she put away her mirror and smoothed down her favorite version of the little black dress. Needing something of her mother’s with her tonight, she’d worn the family pearl necklace and earrings. Family legend said the pearls were lucky. Remembering the cold, she’d topped off her outfit with a multicolored shawl. A cross, two cloves of garlic and her mace were in her purse. Mike answered her knock. He was dressed in black. Even his red hair was covered by a black knit cap. He looked so much shorter with his curly mop of hair hidden she had to fight the urge to stand next to him to see who was taller. “You sure clean up nice,” he said, with obvious appreciation. “Ready to have some fun?” “Lead the way, Ahab.” Mike stopped short and glared at her until comprehension lit up his face. “He told you. I’ll kill him.” He turned and ran down the hall. Eleanor followed slowly, her stomach in knots. She couldn’t believe she was more nervous about seeing Jacob again than she was about getting her sister back from monsters. She heard voices coming from the library. Mike interrupted them. “You told her about the bet, Hastings. I can’t believe you did that. Not good, so not good, man.” “She has arrived then,” she heard Damien say. Feeling shy and self-conscious, Eleanor stopped at the doorway and tentatively looked in. What she saw took her breath away. Last night she’d thought Damien and Jacob were heart-stopping attractive in T-shirts and jeans. Tonight, in tuxes, they rose to a new level. Her pulse quickened as she looked at them standing close to each other by the fireplace. One dark, one light, both deadly handsome. They didn’t seem real. A fire was blazing, adding light to the dragonfly lamp’s glow and the soft firelight danced through their hair. She wanted to go to them, run her fingers through that hair and caress those beautiful faces. It was as if she were very young again, encountering for the first time something unknown and wonderful. You had to touch it to make sure it was real. Damien walked toward her. “Good evening, Eleanor. You look lovely,” he said.

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“Please come in and sit down for a moment. We do not have much time.” He escorted her to the chair and helped her sit. Eleanor chanced a glance at Jacob. He looked at her with such intensity she felt a blush creep up her neck. The damn tingle was back. To cover her embarrassment, she asked Damien, “What’s the plan for tonight?” Damien sat down on the couch. “Ah, yes,” he said. “I love Americans. Always straight to it. No small talk.” He crossed his legs in a fluid motion and settled back. “Very well. You, Jacob and I will be attending the party. Our host is an old associate of mine. Constantine Matthias. You will be posing as Jacob’s companion. It is important you stay as close to Jacob as possible. It is his task to keep you safe. Please, do whatever he asks of you.” Eleanor stole another glance at Jacob. His stare had not wavered. The tingle kicked into high gear. Damien continued. “I will arrange for Constantine and myself to be closeted alone for a period of time. Fifteen minutes is all I can guarantee. During this time, you and Jacob will find your sister and convince her to leave. Michael will be in a small boat on the lake. At your signal, he will come to shore and take Alice away. You and Jacob will return to me, and we will exit the party before Alice’s absence has been noted. We will all meet back here.” Eleanor looked questioningly at Damien. She turned and gave Jacob the same look. “That’s it?” she said to both of them. “No guns, no fights, no hocus-pocus? Just walk in and walk out again?” “Unless you have an alternative plan,” Damien said. Eleanor twisted in her chair, agitated. “What if something goes wrong? How do we get out if they catch on? Jacob said there were men with guns. Are we bringing guns? I don’t think they’ll let us go if we smile and say we’re sorry.” Damien uncrossed his legs and leaned into her. “There is no need to worry about the guns, Eleanor. I will take care of them.” “How?” she asked impatiently. Jacob came to the side of her chair and gazed down at her. “I think you’ve forgotten our conversation last night. No questions, remember?” Eleanor stood and faced him. “Yes but, Jacob—guns. People who have guns use them. That’s why they have them.” “We really must be going,” Damien stood. “It will take over an hour by car to get there. If you are having doubts, you can stay here and the three of us will try without you.” Eleanor rounded on him. “But you said yourself Alice won’t come away with you. I have to go with you to make her. You need me.” “Decide now,” Jacob said. Eleanor felt trapped. If she didn’t go, the chances of getting Alice out weren’t good.

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If she did go, she was putting herself in danger. She’d been hoping for a better plan than this. Jacob took her arm and turned her to him. “Don’t underestimate Damien. He will keep you safe.” “I have no basis to underestimate or overestimate Damien. No questions, remember? You’re asking me to go into this blind.” “We going or not?” Mike asked from the doorway. All three men looked at her. “We’re going,” Eleanor said. She walked out of the room. “God help me, we’re going.” “This way to the tombs,” Mike said as he rushed by her. He led the way down the hall, turned under the chandelier and went deeper into the house. In back of the staircase, a door opened to a narrow stairs. Eleanor smelled cold, damp earth. A cellar, not a basement. The four of them descended, and the stairs put up quite a racket of squeaks, cracks and groans, as the old wood pushed against itself under their weight. The enclosed stairs were so steep Eleanor had to hold on tightly to the banister. One of her high heels sank into a crack in the wood and she abruptly stopped. Jacob bumped into her from above, almost causing her to take a tumble. Holding tight to the banister, she felt Jacob throw his arm around her and pull her back against his body. Because of their position on the stairs, his arm went around her chest instead of her waist. As his arm brushed across her breasts she gasped. He took his arm away slowly, maintaining contact with her body as long as possible. Turning, she saw heat in his eyes. He raised an eyebrow and shrugged. Flustered, she wrenched her heel out of the crack and hurried to the bottom of the stairs. The cellar was one huge open room, the size of the entire house above. It was empty of clutter, unlike any basement she’d ever seen. Where did these guys store the Christmas decorations? Mike moved to the far side of the cellar and she followed him. He led the way through an old wooden door and turned on an overhead light. Eleanor saw two vehicles. An SUV of some sort and a shiny black Hummer. “You certainly travel in style,” she said. Mike went to the SUV and hopped up into the driver’s seat. Jacob went to the Hummer’s passenger door and opened it, looking expectantly at Eleanor. She started toward him, but stopped as Damien walked by her to Mike. “You understand exactly what you have to do, Michael?” Damien asked. “Sure, Damien, we only went over it a million times.” Mike shot Eleanor an embarrassed look. “No last minute questions?” Damien said. “Oh, so he gets to ask questions,” Eleanor muttered.

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Mike answered as if she hadn’t spoken. “No, D, I got it. Don’t worry, I won’t let you down.” Damien took Mike’s hand. “Safe travels, Michael.” “Safe travels, D,” Mike said. Eleanor turned back to Jacob and took his offered hand to be helped into the Hummer. Jacob went around to the driver’s seat. Damien took his place in the backseat. “Everyone buckle up,” Damien said. Jacob pressed a button and a door opened in front of them. They drove out to the left of the house. Eleanor hadn’t noticed the garage entrance from the front of the house. It’s like coming out of the bat cave, she thought. No one spoke on the drive out of the city. The longer the silence dragged on, the more nervous Eleanor became. Bobby’s voice kept sounding in her head. Don’t do anything stupid, and If anything happens to Alice, I will never forgive you. Her mind wandered. Being in a Hummer was different than she thought it would be. It was smaller inside, and designed just for men. Gadgets everywhere. Temperature gauges for outside and in, radar detector, G.P.S. tracking. Male heaven. Even the heat vents were designed with the male in mind—they were shaped like breasts. They even had nipples that functioned as vent directors. As she looked over the inside the car, five C cups stared back at her. It was intimidating. As covertly as possible, she stole glances at Jacob, but he kept his eyes straight ahead. She was about to break the silence when she heard a low humming behind her. Turning, she saw Damien with his eyes closed, hands resting on his knees, palms up. He was gently rocking, forward and back. “What’s he doing?” she whispered to Jacob. Jacob shook his head. “I know it’s a question, but it’s a small one. Come on, please talk to me. I can’t take the silence anymore.” “Let’s just say, he’s gathering his strength.” “For what?” “For his confrontation with Constantine.” “You mean yoga and Zen stuff?” “Something like that.” “You know what this means.” Jacob looked at her warily. “No, what does it mean?” Leaning in close to him, she whispered, “It means Damien is humming in his Hummer.” She dissolved into silent laughter. At first, Jacob looked at her like she was out of her mind. Finally, a small grin appeared on his face and he shook his head. When she caught his eye, the grin blossomed into a full-fledged but reluctant smile. “That is the worst attempt at a joke I have ever heard,” he said.

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“Oh come on. You thought it was funny. You laughed.” “I most certainly did not laugh.” “Yes you did so laugh. I heard you.” “I did not.” “Did so.” “Did—” “Children,” Damien said, from behind them, “may I remind you of the gravity of the situation? I am trying to prepare. Try to harness your nervous energy for when you will need it.” “Sorry,” Eleanor said, properly chastised. When she heard the humming begin again she turned to Jacob and mouthed, “Did so.” Jacob smiled without hesitation this time. Eleanor returned his smile and when she did, Jacob’s smile gentled. It was the kind of smile a man gives a woman when he’s found something he likes about her. Eleanor loved that smile. Jacob focused his attention back on the road. Eleanor watched his lovely smile fade away. Another period of silence followed. They were off the main highway now, using back roads. She hadn’t seen a house or farm in a long time. A sharp gasp came from the backseat, making Eleanor jump. “He is near,” Damien said. “Yes,” Jacob said, “we’re almost there.” “Now, Eleanor,” Damien said, “remember what I told you. Stay close to Jacob and do what he asks of you. If Alice is reluctant to leave with you, Jacob has something to help. And please, no matter what you see or think you see, try not to draw attention to yourself.” Jacob pulled the Hummer onto a smaller road. Eleanor glimpsed lights ahead. Her heart sped up. Damien continued talking in a no-nonsense tone. “Do not let anyone else but Jacob or me get too close to you. Do not touch anything except the furniture. Do not pick up anything, and above all, bring nothing away with you.” A sharp turn brought the house into view. It was huge. How would they find Alice in that labyrinth? Damien put out his hand to her. “Safe travels, Eleanor.” She took his hand awkwardly. “Ah, sure. I mean, safe travels to you too.” His hand was electric, charged somehow. Her fingers tingled long after he’d let go. Jacob pulled the Hummer into the circle drive in front of the house. He put it in park and reached around to Damien. “Safe travels, my friend,” he said. The two men clasped hands in a vice-like grip. “Safe travels, Jacob,” Damien replied. It was quiet in the Hummer while they stared at each other. Eleanor got the impression there was more going on than hand-shaking.

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Damien leaned forward and touched his forehead to Jacob’s. They whispered something in unison, like a prayer. Just when she thought it was getting too weird, they broke apart. Jacob turned off the engine. “Let’s get this over with,” he said. Eleanor reached for her door handle, but Jacob stopped her with his voice. “Wait for me to open the door for you. They are watching us. The sooner they see you are mine, the better.” “I’m yours?” Eleanor bristled. “What kind of macho crap is that?” Damien sighed and said, “Eleanor, do not start this way. Remember what I told you. You will want Jacob close to you soon enough.” As soon as he opened the car door, she could sense something had changed in Jacob. Gone was the man who had smiled so warmly at her. His face was grim, his body alert, like a cat ready to pounce. He put his arm around her waist and opened the back door for Damien. Damien’s countenance had also changed. He exited the car with a fluid power Eleanor had not previously noticed. As he walked to the door, he appeared to float. When she moved to join him, Jacob held her back. Damien stopped a few feet from the door. Jacob, with his arm around Eleanor, reached around Damien and pressed the bell.

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Chapter Seven The door opened before the ring died away. Eleanor gasped before she could stop herself. A nightmare stood in front of them. It was a man, or something that used to be a man. He stood, dressed in a tux two sizes too big, stooped over like a victim of osteoporosis run amuck. What neck he had was hidden in the stoop. Suspicious dark eyes peered up at them through bushy eyebrows. His face was the real nightmare. It had fallen in on itself. The skin sagged over razor-sharp cheekbones with hollow jowls that wobbled below his chin as he moved. His skin was severely wrinkled with lines going every which way. Not based on facial expressions, like crow’s-feet and frowns, but like a sheet of waxed paper crumpled into a ball and flattened out. The suspicious eyes brightened when he saw Damien. “Christopher, it that you?” he rasped out. “Have you come at last?” Jacob stepped in front of the man. “This is Damien Stewart,” he said. “He was invited.” The old man’s face lost its animation. “Very well, please come in.” Jacob stood back, allowing Damien to lead the way. As Eleanor approached the door, cold air rushed over her. If felt like the library the first time she’d entered it. The old man led them through a small entryway to a set of double doors. Swinging them open, he revealed a remarkable room. The ceiling was as high as the house itself, three stories or more. There was a wideopen space that could have been used as a ballroom, with two staircases coming down on opposite sides of the room. Above, the staircases were connected by a balcony. On the main level, beneath the balcony, were floor-to-ceiling windows through which Eleanor could see the moon shining off the lake. Small groups of people were scattered across the room and on both staircases. They turned in unison to stare at the newcomers. What Eleanor saw in the women’s faces was understandable. One look at her companions and the ladies became quite animated. Some looked surprised, others amazed, still others had looks of pure lust. Postures improved, breasts lifted and hair started flipping. She could tell by their expressions not one of them doubted the party had gotten a whole lot more interesting. “This way,” the old man said. He ushered them across the room and up the left staircase.

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Eleanor caught snippets of conversation as she passed. “Have you ever seen anything like them?” “Absolutely fuckable.” And from a man, “I don’t care how good it’s supposed to be, I’m not waiting much longer.” At the top of the stairs, Damien stopped. The old man turned to look at him. “The meeting room is at the end of the hall. If you would please follow me, Mr. Stewart.” Damien moved closer and reached out to touch the man’s spindly arm. Before he could make contact, the man stepped back. “What is your name?” Damien asked. He executed a courtly half bow. “Thomas Kent.” Eleanor could swear she heard his joints creak. “How long have you been with Constantine?” Thomas drew up as straight as he could manage and puffed out his chest. “I am of the first servants. I have been with our lord since he first chose to come among us. I will be one of the first to ascend to the next plane.” Eleanor saw Damien and Jacob exchange a guarded look. “And when will this ascension take place, Thomas?” Damien asked. “Why, when Christopher comes, of course.” He inched closer to Damien and continued in a hushed voice. “You are of the elite, I can tell. Power bleeds off you. Do you know Christopher?” “Yes, Thomas, I know Christopher quite well. I spoke to him just this morning.” Thomas gasped and did a little two-step. “You did?” His voice went up an octave. “Did he say when he is coming? I know I shouldn’t be impatient. I know waiting is part of our test, but it has been such a long time and my body is so tired.” He studied Damien for a moment and astonished Eleanor by falling to his knees. She winced at the sound of his kneecaps hitting the marble floor. “I am worthy. I have done everything my lord has asked. Given him everything I could.” He motioned to his shrunken body. “No one could ask for more.” Tears filled the old man’s eyes. Eleanor felt a stab of pity. He looked so sad and fragile, kneeling on the floor. What had happened to make him like this? Damien bent down and helped him stand. Thomas grabbed tightly at his sleeves and pulled him closer. “Could you complete the circle for Christopher? You are one of them. Is that why you have come?” Damien put his hand on Thomas’ shoulder and looked deeply into his eyes. “What do you think Christopher will do when he comes?” Doubt clouded the old man’s face and he pulled away from Damien. “Don’t you know? Why do you have to ask? Was I mistaken in my assessment of you?” Damien looked coldly at Thomas. “Are you in the habit of questioning the elite? Is this how the worthy behave?”

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Thomas moved toward Damien, his arms out in supplication. “Forgive me, my lord. I wasn’t thinking. I was trying to protect Constantine. His secrets must be kept until the time of ascension. What was your question? Oh yes, Christopher will complete the circle and all wrongs will be righted. He and Constantine will heal the first’s bodies and bring us one step closer to their plane. We will be renewed in the power. Made ready for the task ahead.” Within the circle of his arms, Eleanor felt Jacob’s body stiffen. Damien moved closer to Thomas and took his chin in his hand. He locked eyes with the old man. “And what task is that?” Thomas’ face transformed as he smiled up at Damien. “To be Constantine’s lieutenants. The first among his chosen. With our renewed bodies, we will be able to protect him, to carry out his plans.” Damien put his hands on either side of Thomas’ face. “Has he told you what his plans are?” The old man put his hands over Damien’s. He leaned into him as if for a kiss. “It will all be revealed to us on the day we are renewed. We’re not able to comprehend it now. Not with our small minds and intellects.” “That’s convenient,” Jacob mumbled. Thomas fell to his knees again, holding on to Damien’s hands. “You can see I am worthy, can’t you? You will not tell Constantine any different? Please, my lord.” Damien smiled kindly and once again helped him up. “Do not worry, Thomas. I will personally make sure you are set to rights. You have my word on it.” Thomas threw himself into a deeper bow. He looked as if he might topple over and Eleanor rushed to him. As she helped him straighten his stiff body, she felt how fragile he was. One good breath of wind would take him out. He clung to her for support. “Thank you, my lord. Thank you.” “And now, Thomas, if you would kindly lead the way. My business with your lord is pressing,” Damien said. “Of course, yes, yes,” he said, easing away from Eleanor. He looked at her, patted her hand in thanks and started down a hall lined with doors. “This way, my lord.” Eleanor turned to Jacob, her mouth open with her first question. He put his finger over her lips. “No questions, remember?” he whispered. She rolled her eyes in disgust and let out an exasperated sigh. Jacob put his arm around her waist and following Damien, dragged her down the hall. It was getting colder. Eleanor pulled her shawl tighter around her. Why was it always so cold? The old man stopped in front of the last door on the right. He turned to them and said, “I will announce you.” He opened the door and went in a few steps. With a surprisingly strong voice he said, “Damien Stuart.” Damien swept into the room with the panache of a master magician. Jacob 52

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tightened his hold around Eleanor’s waist and followed. She took a look around. It was a sitting room with leather couches and chairs, scattered at odd angles, to create smaller conversation areas. A fire burned in a large fireplace on the right wall, but she couldn’t feel any heat coming from it. Across the room, windows looked out to the lake. Against the far wall, two men guarded a closed door. Here again, groups of people stopped their conversations to turn in unison and stare at them. One look told Eleanor these people were different from those waiting downstairs. Two groups looked like the old man who had ushered them in. The same stooped postures and wrinkled faces. Like everyone else, they were dressed in tuxedos and cocktail dresses. The women in these groups wore dresses far too young for them. Strapless dresses their deflated breasts could hardly hold up. Their necks were a mass of lose skin that fell over their collarbones like ruffles. Their bare arms looked like match sticks with skin from their upper arms sagging over their elbows. Age spots littered their exposed skin. Eleanor was horrified. What had happened to these people? This is not normal. People do not age this way. She caught the eye of one old woman and what she saw made her want to weep with pity. Hopelessness, shame and a flicker of envy. Eleanor looked away, unable to hold her gaze. It was too painful. The other groups varied in age from teenagers to retirees. A group of three couples in the far corner were in various stages of undress. They looked up from groping each other to check out the newcomers. One man had his hand down his partner’s dress, massaging her breast. Drawn like moths to a flame, everyone in the room slowly moved toward Damien. Their faces frightened Eleanor. She saw lust, longing, and what scared her the most, hunger. She stifled a scream when she saw three of them lick their lips. As they moved closer, Jacob positioned her behind him. Both he and Damien had gone still. That same predator-like stillness she had noted before. Something bad was about to happen. Eleanor braced for it. A beautiful blonde woman stepped between Damien and the advancing hoard. “Now, now, everyone. Where are your manners?” She flashed a brilliant smile at Damien. “These people are guests of Constantine himself. He wouldn’t like it if he found them…ruffled.” At the mention of Constantine’s name, the crowd stopped. Fear replaced hunger on their faces. “Go back to what you were doing.” The blonde dismissed them with a wave. “Constantine will soon be among us. Amuse yourselves until then.” As the crowd receded, she turned her back on them. “Welcome, Damien,” she purred. “Con has told me so much about you. I am Elsbeth Cummings, your hostess. This is my house.” She held out her hand.

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“Forgive me, Miss Cummings, I do not shake hands,” Damien said with a smile to soften his words. Not offended by this rebuff, her smile never wavered. “Of course you don’t. My apologies, I’m still learning. Please, call me Elsbeth.” She turned to Jacob. “You must be Jacob. Con is looking forward to seeing you again.” Cocking her head, she studied him appreciatively. “He didn’t do you justice, but then men never do, do they? And who is this?” She looked down at Eleanor like she was looking at a child. “Con didn’t tell me you were bringing someone. Pretty little thing. Is she yours, or can anyone play?” She reached toward Eleanor’s face. “She is mine,” Jacob said. He moved Eleanor to his other side, stepping between the two women. Eleanor was more than happy to let him. Something about this woman frightened her. “A love match then?” she exclaimed with delight. “How sweet. Strange you would bring her here, don’t you think?” A girl of sixteen or seventeen came up behind Elsbeth. She was petite, even shorter than Eleanor, with long brown hair and deep blue eyes. The halter dress she almost wore was a flaming red. Her ample breasts spilled out of the material on both sides. “You promised to introduce me, Elsbeth,” she said, staring at Jacob with invitation in her eyes. Elsbeth turned to the girl. “Yes, Tina, I know but, oh this is awkward. I had thought Jacob was coming alone. Oh, well, why not? This is Tina,” she said. She moved the girl in front of Jacob and Damien, and stood behind her. “Tina is new to us.” Elsbeth stroked her hands slowly up and down Tina’s arms. “She was so looking forward to meeting you both. Lovely, isn’t she? So fresh, so young. Well, perhaps later, Damien? Con has been saving her for both of you.” Eleanor felt her face flame. Tina looked at Damien and Jacob with an expression no teenager should have on her underage face. Eleanor was surprised she was jealous. She had no intention of letting this budding sex slave get anywhere near Jacob. Or Damien, either for that matter. Weren’t there laws against this kind of thing? Who were these people? “Oh, look,” Elsbeth said. She pointed at Eleanor. “The little one is jealous. Don’t worry, we won’t poach. But you cannot possibly provide for them both. Sooner or later you will,” she stopped, searching for a word, “tire,” she finished. “Enough,” Damien said. “Is Constantine coming out, or am I going to him? How long must I wait out here like a servant?” Elsbeth turned to him, unruffled. She was about to answer when a man came through the open door from the hall. Here’s another one, Eleanor thought. The newcomer was tall and lean like Damien, with long brown hair worn tied back. He was almost too pretty for a man with delicate facial features and huge, sky blue eyes. When he saw Damien, he looked surprise, then profoundly relieved. “Damien, 54

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thank God Almighty. How is it possible you are here? And Jacob, my friend. Are David and Aidan with you? You didn’t bring Christopher, did you? I had no idea you were coming.” He moved toward Damien with open arms, but Damien backed away. “Stay back, Simon,” he said. The man’s face fell. “Damien, you can’t possibly think I am a part of this?” Damien raised one eyebrow. “You are here, are you not?” “You don’t understand. I had no choice. You don’t know what he has done. I was unable to contact, to touch the—” “That will be enough, Simon,” said a voice from behind them. Over the last few days Eleanor thought she was getting used to seeing perfection. She was wrong. The man in front of her didn’t enter the room, he took it over. An aura of power and charisma rippled over her. He was tall and broad-shouldered with golden blond hair that fell like a mane around his face. Piercing blue eyes, with the same unusual feature as Damien’s, hardly any white in them, swept over the room. He stood, like a Viking god, accepting homage from everyone around him. His tux shirt was unbuttoned to the waist, allowing tantalizing glimpses of a well-muscled chest. As he moved toward them, Eleanor noted the same cat-like grace as Damien. A beautiful brunette, whose dress revealed more than it covered, hung on him. Her eyes were so glassy Eleanor thought she must be stoned out of her mind. She nuzzled his neck. He pulled her off him and passed her to the man standing closest to him. The brunette hungrily kissed her new partner and started fondling him. The delighted man scooped her up in his arms and carried her out of the room. This has to be Constantine, Eleanor thought. Mrs. Montgomery hadn’t done him justice. Of all the men she had met in the past few days, he was the most commanding. His eyes were blazing, as if some force were just behind them, waiting to leap out. My God, she thought. This is the man who took Alice. No wonder she’d gone with him. All that power and charisma focused on one person would be overwhelming. Eleanor felt a fraction of it in her haven in Jacob’s arms and she was daunted. “So they sent you, Damien,” his bass voice boomed out. “I would have thought your brother, David. Balance, you know.” He smiled at Damien. Not a real smile, it didn’t reach his eyes. He turned to Jacob. “And Jacob, my old friend. Always right by his side, supporting him.” His gaze shifted to Eleanor. She wanted to run. Instinct told her to get away as fast as possible. Constantine continued. “And with a woman? Letting down that famous control for a moment? This is a night to remember.” He leaned in close to Eleanor. “Can I watch?” Eleanor felt Jacob’s body tighten. He moved forward, but Simon stepped in front of him. “Constantine,” Simon said, “now that Damien is here, may we please—” 55

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Whatever else Simon was going to say was cut off by a fierce look from Constantine. Simon’s face reddened and he started gasping for air. His hands clasped his throat as he looked at Constantine in horror. “Simon, Simon,” Constantine said, as if a man was not choking to death next to him. “You are so boring these days. What has happened to my rogue? Can you not keep pace with me anymore? Well, no matter.” Constantine looked away and Simon collapsed to the floor, gasping. Damien bent down to him and said kindly, “Look at me, Simon.” Simon tried to lift his face but appeared unable. Damien moved his hand within an inch of Simon’s face and made a lifting gesture. Simon’s head raised as if Damien was touching his chin. He stared up at Damien with eyes that spoke volumes. Eleanor could sense some kind of struggle going on inside Simon. As if he was trying to say something but couldn’t. She turned to whisper a question to Jacob but a warning squeeze silenced her. Damien stared into Simon’s eyes, his face calm and unreadable. Not making contact, he moved his hands to either side of Simon’s face. Simon rose to his knees. His face relaxed, his breathing eased. Damien straightened and spun to face Constantine. “You have treated your partner with malice and cruelty. He is cut off, alone. Why have you done this?” Constantine looked at Simon with disgust. “Enough of Simon. We have more important things to discuss.” He held his arms out and turned in a circle. “Look around you, Damien. See what I have built. These people are here by choice.” He took Elsbeth’s hand and kissed it. She caressed his face and swept a triumphant look around the room. Letting her go, Constantine moved to the center of the room, his arms outstretched. “Look at them, Damien. They come to me. I do not seek them out.” As he spoke, three women slunk toward him with hungry looks on their faces. “I have been lied to,” he said angrily. “We all have. This was always possible. It was always waiting for the one who dared.” The women had reached him. They wrapped themselves around his body, ran their hands over his bare chest, nuzzled his neck. At their touch, Constantine started breathing deeply. His hand wrapped around the neck of one of the women and stroked it. She threw her head back and moaned. When Constantine looked at Damien, Eleanor noticed his eyes had changed. The whites were completely gone. “This could take us far, Damien. I can see no limit. We cannot let old beliefs hold us back.” Damien took a step toward him and tensed for a fight. “Christopher suffers,” he said softly. Constantine froze. “Christopher.” The name came out in a snarl. He shook off the women as if they were bugs. Two of them were caught by their male partners. The third tumbled backward and hit her head on a coffee table. There was a loud crack and

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Eleanor saw blood. No one went to help her. Eleanor started toward her but Jacob pulled her back. “Let me go to her. She’s hurt,” she said, struggling against him. Jacob’s only answer was to hold her even closer. Ready for a fight, she turned to look at him. He stared at Constantine, his body ready to spring. She followed his gaze to Constantine and froze. Here was real danger. He had the same look on his face as Damien when she’d touched him in anger. Like an animal ready to pounce. He moved, like the lion he resembled, pacing in front of them. “Christopher suffers needlessly. Why does he not come to me? We are brothers. His place is here beside me.” He pulled one of the old women out from her group. “Look at what he has allowed to happen.” Damien stood calmly, watching him. “Must we discuss this here? Look around you, Con. Can we not sit down together, you and I?” Constantine looked around him. He shook himself as if coming out of a trance. “Yes, yes, this is not the place. I have much to tell you. Come with me.” Motioning for Damien to follow, he stalked back to the room he’d entered from. Damien gave Jacob a single meaningful look and followed him out. Elsbeth rounded on Jacob. “Why have you made him angry? The evening was going so well and now it is ruined.” Eleanor moved between them. “Aren’t you going to help that woman? She’s bleeding.” Elsbeth glanced at the woman and made a disgusted noise. “Munson, take her away and have her cleaned up. Clumsy woman.” One of the guards by Constantine’s door left his post and went to the woman. He helped her up and half carried her toward the door. The crying woman looked mesmerized by the blood on her hands. She clutched at one of the men as she went by. “Jeff,” she said, “please come with me.” “I’m not leaving, Janice. You’ll be fine. It’s only a little blood,” Jeff said. His eyes were glued to Constantine’s door. “But, Jeff, please, honey, I’m scared.” She started to sob in earnest. Eleanor couldn’t help herself. “Hey, Jeffrey,” she said, getting his attention, “quit being such a jerk and go with her.” Jeff glared at Eleanor, opened his mouth to say something but stopped when he glanced at the man behind her. Whatever he saw in Jacob’s face curbed his response. Instead he said, “Oh all right. Christ, Janice. Why do you have to be such a pain in the ass all the time?” He took Janice’s other arm, and with Munson’s help, walked her out the door. Tina had used the diversion to sidle up to Jacob. She smiled at him and ran her finger back and forth over her collarbone. “Can I get you anything Jacob?” she asked, 57

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leaning in to him. Eleanor was worried. Damien had only guaranteed them fifteen minutes. They had to get out of this room and start looking for Alice. As she looked at Tina an idea started to form. She stepped in between Tina and Jacob. “Listen, Gidget,” she said, with as much menace as she could manage. “I’m only going to tell you this once. Get your underage, overdeveloped butt away from him. If I see you come on to him one more time, I’ll take that halter dress you’re almost wearing, wrap it around your throat and strangle you with it. Got it?” Tina’s pretty face contorted with fury. “He was promised to me. You have no claim to him. He’s mine.” “Right,” Eleanor said. “I warned you.” She sprang at Tina, fingernails first. A few things happened at once. Tina screamed and backed away. Jacob caught Eleanor from behind and pulled her against him. Elsbeth called for Eric, the other guard at the door, to break up the fight. Elsbeth turned to Jacob. “Why did you bring such an ill-mannered, crass person here? Haven’t you taught her anything?” Jacob started backing them out of the room. “I think we need some air. Tell Damien we went for a walk by the lake.”

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Chapter Eight Once in the hall, Jacob changed his grip to Eleanor’s wrist and dragged her to the stairs. He hurried them down, past the groups of waiting people and out a door to the lake. When they were out of earshot, he took her roughly by the shoulders. “What part of, ‘try not to draw attention to yourself’, did you not understand?” “It got us out of that room, didn’t it?” she said hotly. “I would have gotten us out of there and with much less fanfare. Every one of those people will remember you. You made an indelible impression.” “So what? Who cares? We’re wasting time, Jacob. We only have fifteen minutes. What do we do now?” Jacob opened his mouth to say something but shook his head instead. “Women,” he said and started walking to the lakeshore. When they were next to the water, he produced a penlight from his pocket and drew Eleanor closer to him. “Stand here. I don’t want anyone from the house to see the light.” He turned the light off and on three times. “That’s to let Mike know we’ve made it this far. He’ll bring the boat in closer now.” Jacob turned and surveyed the house. “That balcony,” he said, pointing to the far left of the house. “Your sister was standing right there. Come on, let’s find a way up.” Eleanor let him drag her along for a few steps, but froze when she looked up at the house, making Jacob abruptly stop. He let out a stifled curse, but she didn’t care. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Besides the large entry area and Constantine’s rooms, three other rooms were lit up. Because of the light against dark effect, each room looked as if it floated in space, not connected. The first room was a mass of pulsating, naked flesh. Eleanor couldn’t make out how many people were connected to all the arms, legs, breasts and butt cheeks. She had to give them credit. Every possible way to fill an orifice of the human body was represented in vigorous detail. In the second room, an old man sat alone on a couch watching a couple having sex on a low table, ten feet in front of him. The old man said something and the couple paused. When he stopped speaking, the couple changed position from missionary to doggie-style, with the woman on all fours while the man took her from behind. The old man stood, moved toward the woman and unzipped his fly. Eleanor looked away. The third room was the worst. Six people, three men and three women, stood in a circle around one of the old ones. They lifted her sagging skin and laughed. The old woman batted their hands away. She was crying and looked frightened. As Eleanor

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watched in horror, one of the men sneaked up behind the woman and ripped off her top. Her deflated, wrinkled breasts were exposed for a few seconds before the woman managed to wrap her thin arms around herself. Even with all the doors and windows shut tight, Eleanor could hear their cruel laughter. “Did you see that?” she asked. “Shouldn’t we—” Jacob cut her off. “There is nothing we can do for her now. We have to find your sister, remember?” Jacob took hold of her wrist once again and pulled her along. Her heel sank into the soft ground. She tripped and went down, pulling Jacob to another abrupt stop. “Eleanor, we have no time for this. Pick up your feet, woman.” He picked her up and set her on her feet. “I’m fine, thanks. Don’t worry about me. You try running in these heels over grass and see how you do.” They reached the side of the house. “Look,” Jacob said, pointing at a metal circular staircase leading to the balcony. “Come on,” he said, pulling her along. “Try not to make any noise going up.” Using just the balls of her feet, Eleanor followed him up the stairs. When they reached the balcony, Jacob went immediately to the nearest door. It was locked. He dug into his tux pocket, took out a thin tool and went to work. She heard a sharp click and the door opened a crack. Jacob turned back to her, put a finger to his lips and crept into the room. She followed him. The only light came from a crack in a door to an adjoining room. Eleanor could make out a bed in the center of the room and thought she saw a form in it. She started toward the bed, but Jacob put out his hand to stop her. He crept away from the bed to the door with the light. He listened for a moment and opened the door a few more inches to let in more light. With the additional light, Eleanor determined there was someone in the bed. She motioned to Jacob to open the door wider. What she saw had her dashing to the bed. Alice’s hair, there was no mistaking it. She stopped short when she reached the bed. Alice slept peacefully. All this time, Eleanor had imagined all sorts of horrible, unspeakable things being done to her and here she was asleep, unharmed. Something deep inside Eleanor loosened. She felt weak with relief. Sitting down gently on the bed, she touched her sister’s shoulder. “Alice, Alice honey, time to wake up.” How many times had she awakened her the same way? The familiar words and actions seemed so out of place here. Alice stirred in her sleep, but didn’t wake. Eleanor tried again. “Come on Al, timesa-wasting. Wake up, little girl.” She hadn’t called Alice little girl in years. Alice stirred again and stretched, her eyes fluttered open.

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“Hi, sweetie,” Eleanor said softly. Alice turned her head toward Eleanor and focused on her. Recognition filled her eyes. “Ellie, is that you?” At the sound of her voice, Eleanor started crying. “Yes, honey, it’s me. Oh, Alice, it’s so good to see you. We’ve all been so worried.” “Ellie, don’t cry. Everything’s all right.” Alice sat up and hugged her. Eleanor tried to get her emotions under control. It felt so good to hold her. A part of her had thought she would never see her again. She feared Alice had taken her place beside their parents, never to come back. She pulled back from the embrace. “Alice, we have to get you out of here. We don’t have much time. Come on, honey, get up.” She pushed the covers aside and started to pull her up. Alice resisted. “What do you mean?” she asked. “Where do you want me to go?” Eleanor stopped pulling and looked at her, astonished. “I want you to come home with me. Back to our house where you belong.” Her sister smiled at her. “Oh, Ellie, I can’t leave. I belong here, with him.” “Alice, look at me.” She took her sister’s face in her hands. “You don’t belong here. I don’t know what this man has told you, but he is not what he seems. He is not who you think he is.” Alice drew Eleanor’s hands away from her face. “No, Ellie, you’re wrong. He is the kindest, gentlest man I’ve ever met. And he is so sad. So very sad. He needs me, El. I’m the only one who can bring him joy and peace. We talk and talk and talk, and when I hold him close, I can feel how peaceful he is, how content. I’ve never felt anything like it. I’ll send for him and introduce you. You’ll see. I can’t do him justice with words.” She got out of bed, turned on a lamp and reached for a phone. Eleanor stopped her. “Wait,” she said. “I want you to stop and think for a minute. I want you to answer some questions. Okay?” Alice turned to face her. With more light in the room, Eleanor could see Alice’s face clearly. She looked dazed, with a dreamy expression as if she were high on something. “All right,” Alice said. She sat on the bed and folded her hands neatly in her lap. “What do you want to ask me?” “Why did you leave the fundraiser without telling anyone?” “Oh, there wasn’t time. We had to go at once. We needed to get here as soon as possible. He wanted to be alone with me.” Alice looked down and blushed. “Didn’t you think we’d be worried?” “But, Ellie, that wasn’t important. I had to go with him.” She shrugged. “And anyway, I’m fine.” Eleanor was getting impatient. “Alice, my God! You’ve been gone three days with no word. I called the police. I put up over two hundred missing persons posters. I’ve

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been out of my mind with worry. How could you not think of that? How could you think that’s not important?” A flicker of indecision passed over Alice’s face. “I-I don’t know. I wouldn’t want you to worry or be upset. I’m sorry if I caused you pain. You know I would never hurt you. It’s just, it seemed… I…” She took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, the dazed, dreamy look was back. “But anyway, you can see now that I’m fine. There’s no cause for worry.” “No cause? He takes you away from us without any word. He holds you here and drugs you into some kind of trance. No cause?” Eleanor shook her. “Alice, snap out of it. Whatever hold this man has on you, try to break it. We have to leave. Now.” Alice stood and backed away from her. “You don’t understand. I’m not leaving. I can’t. He would be so sad. He would have no one.” Eleanor was through trying to reason with her. “Now you listen to me, Alice Marie Hennen. I have had enough of this. You are going to stop this nonsense and come with me right this minute. Put on a robe and some shoes and get ready or I’ll pick you up and carry you. Understand?” I sound just like Mom, Eleanor thought. Maybe that’s not such a bad thing. Alice shook her head. “You can’t take me away from him. I won’t let you. I’ll scream and his friends will come. I mean it, Ellie, I’m not going and you can’t make me.” Alice backed into a corner, looking confused and frightened. Eleanor was at a loss. She’d thought Alice would just come with her. She hadn’t really believed Damien’s story about Alice being exactly where she wanted to be. Looking around the room for help, she saw Jacob standing in a dark corner and realized she’d forgotten he was there. Crossing the room to him, she whispered, “Any ideas?” “Damien did tell you she might be like this.” “I know, but I didn’t really believe it was possible. She’s my sister. I’ve known her all her life. Something is very wrong with her.” Jacob took something out of his pocket. “I have this.” He showed Eleanor a hypodermic syringe. Eleanor shook her head. “Oh, no.” “It’s only something to put her to sleep for a short time. There are no lasting effects. Would you rather leave her here like this?” “You don’t understand. Alice hates drugs. She has trouble justifying taking an aspirin. No, we are not drugging my sister, and that is final.” She walked back to Alice. “Who is that man?” Alice asked suspiciously. “He’s a new friend of mine. He helped me find you.” A thought popped into Eleanor’s head. “Alice honey?” “Yes?” “What about Bobby?”

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The confused look was back on Alice’s face. “Bobby?” she said softly. “Yes, honey, Bobby. He’s been so worried about you. He came to the police with me. He’s led all the search parties.” “He-he did?” “Yes, he did. He told me if anything happens to you, he will never forgive himself. He hasn’t slept much since you disappeared. Bobby needs you too.” “Bobby said that? Bobby needs me?” Alice looked more alert now, less dazed. “Please, Alice, come home to Bobby. At least for a little while. You can always come back here if you want.” “I can? I can come back here if I want?” “Sure you can.” Eleanor felt bad lying but she had no choice. Alice still looked confused. “I could see Bobby, and then come back?” she said, as if testing Eleanor. “Absolutely,” Eleanor lied. “Well…I think that would be all right. For a little while at least. I would like to see Bobby.” Eleanor grabbed the robe and slippers at the bottom of the bed. She helped Alice put them on. They had to get going before Alice changed her mind. “I should call Constantine and tell him I’m leaving.” Eleanor pushed her toward the balcony door. “We’ll call him from our house.” Jacob stood at the door flashing his penlight. He stepped out onto the balcony and Eleanor followed with Alice. “This way,” Eleanor said, leading Alice to the circular stairs. “Why aren’t we going out the front?” “We left our car on the other side of the lake. It was such a nice night we decided to boat over.” Man, Eleanor thought, once you start lying, it’s hard to stop. Alice must really be out of it. She would never buy this if she was in her right mind. They made it down the stairs and headed straight to the lake. Jacob stopped them behind a tree, close to the shore. We might pull this off, Eleanor thought. Constantine’s voice boomed out into the night. “Do not be such a fool, Damien.” At the sound of his voice, Alice squirmed in Eleanor’s arms. “I’ve changed my mind,” Alice said. “I’ll go see Bobby another time. It sounds like he needs me.” Eleanor turned Alice to face her. “No, Alice, we have to go now. You can come back later, remember? Please, Al, just come with me.” Alice struggled against her. “No,” she said. “Let me go to him. Let me—” She stopped struggling suddenly and sagged in Eleanor’s arms. Jacob caught her on the way down. The empty hypodermic was in his hand.

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“You asshole,” Eleanor hissed. Ignoring her, Jacob scooped Alice up in his arms and dashed to the water. Mike waited in the boat a few feet from shore. He pushed with the oars and got closer. Jacob settled Alice gently into the bottom of the boat and pushed them off. Mike started rowing and was out of sight in a flash. Jacob turned to Eleanor. “Let’s get back.” He grabbed her wrist and started toward the house. Eleanor was furious. “How could you do that? I told you not to drug her. Who do you think you are? If anything is wrong with her, I’ll kill you. Just because you’re bigger—” Jacob spun around and put his hand over her mouth. He half carried, half dragged her underneath the balcony. They stood there, listening. Eleanor heard footsteps on their right. Jacob took his hand away from her mouth and looked for a hiding place. They were in the open walkway that ran the length of the house, beneath the balcony. Jacob circled Eleanor’s waist and backed her against the house. He looked into her eyes and took her chin in his hand. “Kiss me,” he said. She had just a second to realize what he wanted before his lips covered hers. At first, she was too shocked to feel anything, but soon his mouth worked its magic on her again. He was gentle, coaxing her lips open with this tongue. Eleanor felt waves of passion building inside as the kiss intensified. It was a commanding, take-no-prisoners kind of kiss, and she surrendered to it. His tongue explored her mouth, pushing in and out until she moaned with pleasure. His hands caressed down her arms to circle her waist, then his thumbs moved in tantalizing circles just under her breasts. He kissed and nibbled his way to her ear. “Eleanor,” he whispered. The sound of his deep voice danced over her as it always did, sending sweet vibrations from her ear to her center. Her name on his lips did something to her, pulled on nerve endings she’d never felt before. The depth of her feelings frightened her. How had she fallen so hard in so short a time and why did this all feel so wonderfully familiar? He took her mouth again, his kisses deep and probing. When his hand moved to cover her breast Eleanor let out a soft cry. She forgot everything but the feel of his hands on her. With a groan, he drew back reluctantly and looked at her, his eyes smoky with passion. “I think they’re gone,” he said huskily. “We should stop.” His eyes moved to where his hand continued caressing her breast. “Tell me to stop, Eleanor.” He was right, they should stop. Alice’s absence could be noticed any second. They were in danger. She should tell him to stop. Instead, she begged, “No, Jacob. Please, don’t stop.” Jacob made a noise in the back of his throat, pushed her back against the wall and frantically kissed her. Her dress and shawl were slipped over her shoulders, and then nothing separated his hands and her skin. The feel of his rough fingers against her 64

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sensitive nipples sent wave after wave of pleasure through her. He fell to his knees, his mouth covering her breast. Eleanor moaned his name. She felt his hand, under her dress, stroking her thighs, pushing them farther apart. His mouth moved to her other breast and Eleanor’s nipple hardened. The sensation shot from her breast to her center. She moved against him, making soft muted noises. He slipped his hand inside her panties and his fingers caressed her. “Jacob,” a voice said insistently. “Jacob, didn’t you hear me calling?” Jacob straightened up, but did not let her go. He turned his head toward the voice and said, “What do you want, Simon.” “I think you better come. It sounds as if Damien needs you.” Jacob’s smoky eyes looked down at Eleanor. She wanted to scream with frustration. Her body was on fire. Using him as a shield, she frantically attempted to dress. Her fingers shook so badly it took an eternity to cover up. Jacob caressed her cheek and gave her a small smile. “To be continued,” he whispered. He turned to Simon. “What’s happened?” he asked. Simon looked upset. “I don’t know. I stayed in the room to be close by in case Damien got through to him. That is why you came, isn’t it. To try to reason with him? I haven’t heard Damien’s voice in some time. I think he might—” Jacob grabbed Eleanor’s hand and pushed Simon aside. “Why didn’t you go in, Simon?” Simon followed them. “I can’t do anything, Jacob. I am cut off. You don’t know what it’s been like.” Jacob stopped walking and turned back to him. “I’m sorry, Simon, you were right to come and get me. Now, lead the way and get me there quickly.” Simon led them to another circular staircase, a mirror image of the one on the other side of the house. At the top of the stairs he pointed to a door. “That’s Constantine’s room.” Eleanor could hear Constantine’s voice now. He was raving. Jacob moved to the door. Simon caught his arm as he passed. “Be careful. I have seen him like this before. He’s unpredictable. And, please, Jacob, try not to hurt him. He is still Con, after all.” Jacob nodded at Simon and turned to Eleanor. “Stay by Simon, he will keep you safe.” He looked back to Simon. “Remember, she is mine.” Simon gave him a crooked smile. “Yes, I saw that.” Eleanor blushed deeply. Could this night get any more embarrassing, she wondered? Jacob opened the door to Constantine’s room. Eleanor could hear what he was saying, but it wasn’t English. It sounded Russian. As she went in, she saw Constantine pacing back and forth in front of Damien, who slouched in a chair. She’d never seen Damien slouch. He wasn’t the slouching type. He looked tired, drawn and well, older.

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Constantine whirled to face them. “How dare you come in here? Get out,” he yelled in English. Jacob stood in front of Constantine. “You cannot come between me and my partner. Stand back and let me go to him.” “Partner,” Constantine spat. “We have no need of them. Look at this pitiful partner of mine.” As he spoke, he backed Simon into a corner. “No imagination, no daring, no loyalty. So weak.” Jacob used the opportunity to go to Damien. They clasped hands and looked into each others’ eyes. Eleanor felt something come over her. A buzz against her skin. It was the same feeling she got with goose bumps, only deeper inside, under the skin, instead of on top of it. Damien straightened in his chair. His face underwent a transformation. Eleanor watched in amazement as all trace of fatigue melted away. She could swear she saw the dark circles under his eyes disappear. Back to normal, Damien stood and faced Constantine “Leave the poor man alone. You have done enough to him. Let him go to Christopher.” “Never,” Constantine shouted. “Christopher must come to me. It is the only way.” Damien sighed. “Very well. I will tell him what we have talked about. And now, I would like to leave. I feel we have overstayed our welcome.” “You had no welcome to overstay.” Constantine turned and noticed Eleanor standing apart from the others. He moved toward her. “She looks well-used, Jacob. You have been busy during our talk. What if I took a small taste?” His hand reached out for her. Eleanor backed away from him. From everything she’d seen and heard tonight, allowing Constantine to touch her would be a bad thing. “Have you strayed so far from us you would take what another has claimed?” Damien asked. Constantine continued to stare at Eleanor. She’d managed to put a chair between them. When she met his eyes, she felt a pull, as if he were drawing her in. The world around her clicked like a telephoto lens and suddenly there was only Constantine, his eyes, his hair, his full mouth. He looked so sad, she thought, so alone. Why doesn’t anyone help this man? His burdens were heavy. No one understood what he was trying to do. Some small part of her fought against him. This is not right, she thought. What is happening to me? Abruptly, whatever held her, let go. She staggered back and caught herself on the chair. Her heart raced. It felt as if she’d run a mile. Constantine laughed. “Claimed, but not yet taken, I see. She is burning with need. Has it been so long you have forgotten how, Jacob? They make a great pair, our

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partners, eh, Damien? Your eunuch and my weakling. And yet you say we need them.” Simon came out of the corner at him. “How can you say that? We have been through so much, you and I. How many times have we saved each other? If I am weak, you’ve made me that way. We must go back, Con. I am going mad. You cannot leave me alone out here.” He grabbed Constantine’s arm. “Please, Con. Let’s go to Christopher. Damien and Jacob will help us. Please.” Constantine smiled sadly at him. “You still do not understand. It is finished. You are no more in the Balance. There is no going back for me or for you.” Simon clutched at this shirt. “No, Con, that cannot be. I can’t go back to what I was. There is nothing there for me anymore. Con, for the love of God!” Constantine broke his hold and tossed him away. Simon flew over a table and crashed into the wall. “Enough,” Damien said. He went to Simon and helped the dazed man up. “I will take Simon with me. You have no need of him and he is suffering.” “Do you think I am such a fool? I will not give him to Christopher to use against me. Simon stays where he is. I will use him as I see fit.” Simon sank down on the couch and put his face in his hands. “Go, Damien. There is no reasoning with him. Just go. Tell Christopher I will hold on as long as I can.” Constantine advanced on Damien, holding his right hand before him. “What makes you think any of you will be leaving here tonight? If I want you to stay and join me, you will.” He moved his hand to an inch from Damien’s face. “Would you like to see what this feels like?” In a flash of movement, Jacob pushed Damien out of Constantine’s reach and took his place. Constantine hissed and pressed his palm against Jacob’s cheek. Jacob cried out as his body went rigid. Constantine put his other hand on Jacob’s other cheek and pulled him closer. Jacob spit in Constantine’s face. Constantine roared and squeezed Jacob’s face between his hands. “Stop it,” Eleanor shouted. “You’re hurting him.” Damien had recovered from Jacob’s push and rushed back to the struggle. To Eleanor’s surprise, he didn’t touch Constantine or Jacob. He got as close to Constantine’s ear as possible and shouted, “David is with Christopher, Con. My brother and your brother. All it will take is one touch. Let him go.” Constantine’s head reared back and he screamed with rage. His hands drew away from Jacob’s face. Jacob staggered, but managed to stay on his feet. “All right, go,” he spat back at Damien. “But soon it will not matter who is with whom. Soon you will not be able to stop me so easily. So run, Damien. Run back to your group of pathetic, impotent fools. Tell them their time is over. I plan to take this as far as I can. They will join me or fade.” He turned to Eleanor, his eyes sweeping over her. “Now get out before I change my mind about this woman and keep her for my own.” He reached for her. “I could ease your burning, little one.”

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Eleanor backed into Jacob’s arms. She hadn’t seen him move behind her. What kind of power struggle was going on here? Who were these men? What was Christopher to them? What did they do to people? How were they able to remain secret from the world? This was too much for her. She wanted to get away and think this through. Jacob started moving them to the door but stopped when Damien spoke. “Be careful, Con. You may not like what you find.” He went to Simon and held out his hand to him. Simon looked up at the hand in wonder. “Goodbye, Simon. Safe travels, my friend.” With a kind of reverence, Simon took Damien’s offered hand. Eleanor felt the goose bump feeling again. Simon’s face relaxed and he sighed deeply. When he looked up at Damien there were tears in his eyes. “Safe travels, Damien. Thank you,” he said in a choked voice. Damien nodded to Jacob and they went out the door. From behind them, Constantine mocked, “Safe travels.” He started to laugh. His laughter followed them all the way down the stairs.

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Chapter Nine Back in the Hummer, Eleanor couldn’t stop shaking. The adrenaline had worn off and delayed shock had set in. They were headed back to the city. Jacob shrugged out of his tux jacket. “Here, put this on. I’ll turn on the heat.” Eleanor put on his jacket and was again surrounded by his scent. She felt better at once. Brave enough to ask, “Those people, the old ones. What’s happened to them?” Damien answered her from the backseat. “Eleanor, remember what I told you back at the house? The less you know about all this, the better.” “But, Damien, those people. Can you help them? Can anyone help them?” “Rest assured, we will do all we can for them. Now, try to think of other things. The evening is a success, is it not? We have your sister. Michael will meet us at the house with her.” Thinking of Alice made her angry again. “Yes, but he drugged her.” She pointed accusingly at Jacob. “I told him not to but he did it anyway. What was in that syringe? It must have been very powerful, because she dropped like a rock.” “Eleanor,” Jacob said. “You were there. She wasn’t going to leave with us. She would have brought the guards with her screaming.” Eleanor had to admit she’d been out of options at the time. Grudgingly she said, “I still think there had to have been a better way.” “You did not run into any trouble?” Damien asked. Eleanor thought of their time beneath the balcony and was grateful the car was dark. She glanced at Jacob who had a small smile on his face. He shot her a sideways look with those smoky eyes. “No,” he said. “It went as planned.” “I am sorry about the drug, Eleanor,” Damien said. “I had hoped you would not need it. So, she would not break away from him, even for you?” “Well, she was coming with us until she heard Constantine’s voice, but not because of me.” “Please explain,” Damien said, suddenly sounding very interested. “She agreed to come with us because she wanted to see Bobby.” “The Bobby from the note?” “Yes, I think they might care for each other. If it’s true, it’ll be the one good thing to come out of all this.” Damien sighed. “Where is this Bobby now?”

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“Leading the search parties. Why?” “We will need him when Alice awakens. I was hoping to use you, but it looks as if we need to take another person into our confidence.” Some confidence, Eleanor thought. No questions allowed. No answers given. All she got was the “it’s best you don’t know” crap. “What are you going to use Bobby for?” “We must break Constantine’s hold over your sister.” “What do you mean? I thought if we got her away from him, she would be fine. How can he control her from so far away?” “Please, Eleanor, you must trust us a little while longer. With Bobby’s help, we will set Alice to rights.” “I do trust you, Damien. From what I saw tonight you fall on the good side of good and evil. But that doesn’t mean I’ll let you do whatever you’re going to do to Alice without me being there.” “Fair enough.” “May I ask questions about Alice’s condition?” “Eleanor, please,” Damien moaned. Eleanor got angry again. “Listen, I think I need to know a few things, for safety reasons. What if Alice has a relapse? What if Constantine finds her again? I have to know how to keep her safe.” A minute passed as Damien considered this. Eleanor looked at Jacob, but he kept his eyes straight ahead. “Very well,” Damien said. “I will answer you, if I can.” “Will she remember everything? I mean, how much will she have to regret? It looked to me like she was in some kind of trance or drug-induced state. The things she said were so unlike her.” “Her memory of events will be sketchy. She will remember Constantine and how he made her feel. As for other details, people she may have met or what she had to eat, those will be murky.” Eleanor had a horrible thought. “Could she be pregnant?” “Not with Constantine’s child and I doubt very much if he let anyone else touch her.” “So you’re going to put her back the way she was before this happened?” “Yes, with Bobby’s help.” “Why does it have to be Bobby? Why not me?” “It must be the person for whom the afflicted feels strongest. True love is best, or the love between a parent and child.” “How will you help her? What will you do, exactly?” “We will,” he paused as if searching for the right word, “remind her of her life before she met Con. Show her what is waiting for her. Without Constantine’s constant 70

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presence, his influence will fade. I assure you no harm will come to her.” “How long will it take?” “It varies. Much depends on your sister’s own strength of will and on how much she cares for Bobby. I think we can be done by morning if we can find Bobby.” “What do I do if, after you’re gone, she gets all Stepford Wives on me again? Or if Constantine comes after her?” “You must never confront Con on your own. If you see him or any of his people take your sister and run. But try not to worry, Eleanor. We will be watching. You have touched our world. It will be our job to keep both of you safe.” “What if I need to contact you? What do I do?” “You do not. I meant what I said. After tonight, you will never see us again.” “Oh,” she said in a small voice, turning to look out the window to hide her face as tears filled her eyes. Never see them again. They had been so busy getting Alice back, she’d not had time to think about what that meant. True, she’d only known them for one day, but the thought of never seeing them again staggered her. Would Jacob let her walk away? Did she mean anything to him? Was all that “she is mine” stuff really just for show? It sure had felt real to her. Could she walk away from him? Did she have a choice? She had a terrible feeling she would yearn for him the rest of her life. Every man she met would be compared to Jacob and found wanting. What about Damien and Mike? Would they ever finish Moby Dick? It didn’t matter because she would never find out. And the great mystery of who and what they were would haunt her forever. Now that she knew humans weren’t the only intelligent species on the planet, her life was changed forever. She would always be watching and waiting. Is this what Simon meant when he said he was cut off, alone? They’d given her a tantalizing glimpse of their world and now they would slam the door in her face. It all made her very sad. Jacob kept glancing at her. “Are you all right, Eleanor?” he asked. “I’m fine,” she said quietly. “It’s just, well, I will miss you all.” “Eleanor, you are a marvel of a woman,” Damien said. “Most people would be glad to see the back of us, but you, with your adventurous spirit, will miss us. I love Americans. Ah, we are back in the city. It always amazes me how much faster it is coming back than going to. Eleanor, if you would phone Bobby and arrange for him to meet us at the house. Make sure he tells no one where he is going.” Eleanor retrieved her purse from the glove compartment and dug out her cell phone. Bobby had left five messages. Oh man, he is going to be so mad at me. Best to plan a frontal attack. She punched in Bobby’s number. “Eleanor, Goddamn it, where the hell—” Bobby began. She cut him off. “Bobby stop, please, you have to listen to me. I need you to meet me somewhere and not ask any questions. You can’t tell anyone where you’re going.” “What? You want me to what? Now?” 71

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“Yes, Bobby, please. Now. I need you. You have to trust me. You will be glad you did.” There was a long silence while Bobby thought about it. Finally he said, “All right, but don’t you want me to bring Comstock and Farmer. They’re right here.” “No. You have to find a way of getting away from them without arousing suspicion. Can you do that?” “Yeah, sure, I think I can figure something out. This’d better be good, Ellie.” “I promise you it will be.” She gave him the address and hung up. They pulled into the hidden driveway of the house. Eleanor was glad to see the SUV parked in the garage. She hopped out of the car and ran for the stairs. Once on the main floor, she yelled for Mike. He called to her from the top floor. “Up here. I thought I should put her in a bed. She’s out cold. What did you do to her?” Eleanor rushed up the stairs. “I didn’t do anything, but your friend Jacob shot her up with something. How’s she doing?” “Best date I ever had. Listened to my music and didn’t bother me with a lot of talk about relationships and hair gel. She’s in here.” He led the way into a bedroom. Alice lay in the middle of a large four-poster bed. She looked so tiny under all those covers. “She sure is beautiful,” Mike whispered. ”I have a weakness for long beautiful hair. What happened to you? Miss out on the gene pool, did you?” “Oh, you are a wit, you are. Tell me, do you sleep on a rack at night to squeeze out another inch?” “Ouch, short joke. No fair. Where are the guys?” “I left them in the garage.” Eleanor gave him a searching look. “Mike, how long have you been with them? Or is that top secret, need-to-know information?” “Getting to you, is it? Well, I can’t blame you. It was almost a year before they told me anything. I’ve been with them almost three years now. Jacob saved my butt from some gang members in Chicago. I had no place to go and no one who cared. They took me in, fed me, cleaned me up some, and if I didn’t have to keep trying to better myself, as Damien puts it, I’d be on easy street. Have you read Moby Dick?” Eleanor smiled at him. “I didn’t like it either. Thanks for taking care of her and for, well, everything.” “Ah, now, don’t spoil it by getting all mushy on me. I’m going to go see what the guys are doing.” After he left, Eleanor sat on the bed and let herself relax. Here was Alice, safe and almost sound. Her gamble of trusting Damien and Jacob had paid off. Alice stirred in her sleep and Eleanor soothed her forehead. She hummed a lullaby their mother had always sung to them.

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“Pretty tune,” Jacob said from the door. Eleanor nodded. “Damien will be up in a minute. Is she still out?” “No thanks to you.” “Okay, Eleanor, you have to let that go. It’s over.” He sat on the other side of the bed. “She looks so young asleep like this. How much younger than you is she?” “Three years, but sometimes I think she never ages. She has such an innocence about her. Not naїve, she’s nobody’s fool, but she looks at the world differently than most people.” “I had a brother like that. Having him in the family was a gift and a curse. His soft heart and sense of fair play got him into a lot of trouble, but I was very proud of him. He was always dragging me into some kind of mess.” “Sounds familiar. Where is he now?” Jacob looked down at his hands. “He died a long time ago. Seeing you and your sister together made me think of him.” He looked up at her with pain in his eyes. Eleanor reached over and took his hand. “I’m sorry you lost him. It’s very hard, isn’t it?” She looked down at their joined hands. This is so comfortable, she thought. It feels so right. What on earth was she going to do? Damien came in the room. Jacob let go of her hand and stood. “She’s still sleeping. Do you want to start?” Damien sat on the side of the bed Jacob had vacated. He looked down at Alice. Eleanor felt the goose bump sensation again. Damien closed his eyes and put his hand on Alice’s forehead. He started humming, which made Eleanor think of her feeble joke in the car and she looked up at Jacob. He looked down at her with a silly grin on his face. “Did not,” he mouthed. Alice started to wake up and Eleanor took her hand. “Alice, can you hear me?” she asked. Alice moaned and tried to sit up. “What’s happened to me, El? Why do I feel so woozy? Have I been sick or something?” Eleanor helped her sit up. “No, not sick, exactly. What do you remember?” Alice looked around and noticed Damien and Jacob. She backed up toward the headboard and pulled the covers up to her chin. “Who are these men, Ellie? Where are we?” Eleanor scooted closer to her. “They are friends. Don’t worry, everything is fine, I’m right here. What do you remember, honey?” “I was at the benefit. Grace had forgotten to get the cards for the silent auction and I was making up some by hand and this man…” Her face went white. She looked at Eleanor, her eyes wide. “Ellie, what have you done? Where is Constantine? You took

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me away from him, didn’t you? How could you do that? Oh no, no, I have to go back. I have to go back right now.” She started to get out of bed but Damien held her down. She struggled against him. “You have to let me go to him,” she cried. “You have to.” She started crying. Out of the corner of her eye, Eleanor saw a figure rush in. Damien was jerked back off the bed, away from Alice. “Take your hands off her, unless you want to lose them,” Bobby roared. He shoved Damien farther out of the way and went to Alice. Gently, he took her by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Thank God, you’re alive.” He pulled her to him and cradled her in his arms. “Alice, Alice baby, it’s me. It’s Bobby. Everything will be all right now. Thank God. Eleanor, where did you find her?” He pulled back and looked at Alice. She hung her head. Her hair covered her face. “Look at me, honey.” Alice looked up at him. She had the confused, dazed look Eleanor remembered. Good, he has her thinking. Bobby rounded on Damien. “What the hell did you do to her?” Eleanor thought it was time to jump in. “Bobby, wait. It’s not what you think. These men saved her. They helped me rescue her from the man who took her. She’s dazed and has been through so much. She’s not herself. We need their help.” “What are you guys, doctors? It looks to me like we should take her to the hospital.” “No, Bobby, we have to try this first. If it doesn’t work, then okay, we’ll go to the hospital. You know I would never do anything to hurt her. She’s been kind of brainwashed and Damien and Jacob can bring her back to us. We have to let them try.” “Jesus, Ellie, I don’t know what’s going on here but it sounds ridiculous. What the hell have you gotten us into?” “Bobby?” Alice was looking at him, her green eyes full of pain. She reached out and touched his cheek. Bobby took her hand and kissed her palm. “I’m so lost, Bobby. I can’t seem to focus on anything. He keeps calling to me. How do I stop it? Bobby, help me, please.” Bobby turned to Eleanor. “All right. What do we do?” Eleanor looked at Damien. Damien came around the bed and stood by her. “May I sit here?” he asked. Eleanor stood and got out of his way. Damien sat down, but didn’t touch Alice. He looked at Bobby. “It is important for her to always see you. You need to focus on your love for her. The life the two of you have ahead. Try not to break your concentration, no matter what you may see or feel. Do you think you can do that?” “For her, I can do anything,” Bobby said. “That is what I am depending on.” Damien settled close to Alice. She looked at him and whimpered. “Do not worry, Alice. We are all here for you. We will bring you back to yourself.”

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He turned to Bobby. “Concentrate on your love for her.” Bobby looked at Alice. Much to her shame, the look on his face made Eleanor envious. Not of Bobby and Alice. She loved them both too much to begrudge them this kind of happiness. But she had been waiting all her life for a man to look at her like that. The way her father had looked at her mother. She turned to Jacob. He looked back at her as if he knew what she was thinking. He reached out to touch her, but Damien chose that moment to start humming. Jacob dropped his hand and focused his attention on Damien. The moment was over. Damien lowered his head in concentration. Just when Eleanor thought nothing was going to happen, he grabbed Bobby’s hand. Bobby let out of gasp of wonder. His eyes opened wide. “Jesus!” he exclaimed. “Bobby,” Damien said, “pull her focus back to you.” Alice’s head was thrown back and she moaned in pitiful little spurts. Bobby grabbed her head and forced her to look at him. Her pupils were going in and out of focus. Eleanor could sense a struggle going on. All three of them were battling something unseen and it looked like they were losing. “Jacob,” Damien said. Eleanor watched Jacob’s face as he moved to the other side of Damien. He seemed calm, detached. He stood in front of Damien and held out his hand. Damien grabbed for it like a drowning man. As soon as their hands touched, the goose bumps were back. Jacob’s face changed. His eyes started to glow like Constantine’s. It was some kind of power, Eleanor thought. She watched the power move from Jacob to Damien to Bobby and finally to Alice. When it reached her, Alice screamed and went rigid. She hung there for a long moment and then collapsed into Bobby’s arms. Damien and Jacob broke apart. Jacob leaned back against the wall, hardly able to stand and Damien fell back on the bed, panting. Bobby cradled Alice in his arms. He lifted her head gently. Eleanor stood frozen at the foot of the bed. She saw Alice focus on Bobby. And then she saw something that lifted her heart. Alice smiled. A sweet smile of recognition and love, all aimed at Bobby. When he took her face in his hands and kissed her, Eleanor started to cry. Alice looked up from Bobby. “He’s gone,” she said to everyone. “I can’t feel him anymore. How can I ever thank you? Oh, Ellie, thank you for coming for me.” Eleanor ran to her and the sisters embraced. They were both crying. “Do you know, you sounded just like Mom back there?” Alice said. “You even used ‘I have had enough of this.’” The men looked on as both sisters collapsed into hysterical laughter. When the laughter died down, Alice looked at Bobby shyly. “Bobby I—” He put a finger to her lips. “No, love, you don’t have to,” he began, but Damien

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broke in. “I think you two could use some time to yourselves,” he said. Jacob went to him and helped him up. “Eleanor, I would like to speak to you,” Damien said. Eleanor hugged her sister one more time and followed them. When she was at the door, she looked back at the bed. Alice and Bobby we’re holding hands, smiling shyly at each other with wonder in their eyes.

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Chapter Ten Eleanor bounced down the stairs. What an amazing night. She had enough to ponder for years to come. All her life, she’d been waiting for something exciting to happen to her and this was it. If she never saw Damien and Jacob again, at least she had this one night when she’d been part of a truly remarkable adventure. When she entered the library, she found Damien alone, leaning against the fireplace mantel. Overcome with gratitude, she rushed to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “How can I ever thank you for bringing her back to us? If you ever need anything, if there’s anything I can do, you only have to ask. Thank you.” She hugged him. After a moment Damien relaxed and hugged her back. ”Be careful what you promise, Eleanor. I might take you up on it someday.” “Tease. Now, what did you want to talk with me about?” Taking her hand, he led her to the couch. “Please, sit down.” He took a seat beside her. “I could not help but notice how quiet you were in the car after I talked about never seeing us again. Will it truly cause you so much distress?” She looked into his dark eyes. He genuinely cared how she was feeling. How many people like that did you meet? When you did, shouldn’t you try to keep them close? She looked down at her hands, unable to meet his eyes. “Yes, it will. It’s hard to explain. I lead a quiet kind of life. No intrigues, no scandals. I’ve known you all such a short time, but it’s been the most exciting time of my life. Now that the danger is over, I mean.” She looked up at him. “It is over, isn’t it? Constantine won’t come after Alice, will he?” “I assure you, he will not. It will be too dangerous for him at the moment. He will have other, more pressing concerns. Your sister is safe. But what of you, Eleanor? Can you go back to your quiet life?” “I don’t know. I’ve always liked a good mystery, and you, my friend, are the most mysterious person I’ve ever met. I’m sad I’ll never get the chance to figure it all out.” A sad smile played across his lips. “I have often imagined what we must look like from the outside. But believe me, Eleanor, you do not want to be a part of our world. It can be a bleak place.” “My dad always said the world is what we make it. Have you ever thought of leaving yours and seeing what it’s like among us mere mortals?” “More times than you can imagine.” He took her hand and looked into her eyes. “And now, I must ask you for one more thing.” “Anything,’” she assured him. “You must never tell anyone what you have seen tonight. It could cause great harm to many people. Tell the police you received an anonymous tip where to pick up your 77

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sister. Make it a public place, like a park. I will leave the details to you. Say she has been drugged. There will be traces in her bloodstream. They will believe it if you are steadfast and convincing. Can you do this for us, Eleanor?” Eleanor thought about what he was asking. Never to tell anyone, ever. Not friends, family, husband, or child. Could she keep this secret forever? But then who would believe her if she did tell them? Finally, she said, “Yes, I will keep it secret. I promise.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “Thank you.” “Excuse us,” Bobby said from the doorway. “Alice and I are going to leave and we wanted to say goodbye.” Alice crossed to Damien who stood as she approached. She looked at him with tears in her eyes. “I will never forget what you did for me. I felt what freeing me from him cost you. Will you be all right?” Damien took her hand. “Do not distress yourself on my account. I shall recover within a matter of hours. You have my profound apologies that your life was interrupted in this manner.” Bobby put his arm around Alice’s waist and offered his other hand to Damien. “Thank you, sir. I don’t know exactly what happened up there but I’ve never felt anything like it. If we can do anything for you, please let us know.” Damien shook Bobby’s hand. “As a matter of fact, you can do something very important for me. I have told Eleanor what I would like you to say to the police about this matter. I would prefer to be kept out of it.” Bobby looked uncomfortable. “But what about the bastard who took Alice? He has to be caught and punished. We can’t let him get away.” “His punishment is best left to us. You must trust me on this.” Bobby bristled. “I don’t like it, but under the circumstances—” Alice broke in. “I don’t think the police would be much use against him, anyway.” She gave Damien a haunted look. “Damien, please. Stop him.” “You have my word,” he said gravely. Alice sagged back into Bobby’s arms. “I have to get you home, love,” he said tenderly. “Eleanor, are you coming?” “I’ll be a few minutes. Let’s meet back at the house.” “Well, goodbye and thanks again for everything,” Bobby said. Damien smiled at them. “I wish you much happiness in your new life together.” “Goodbye,” Alice said. They went out of the room holding each other. Eleanor turned to Damien. “How can you be so sure their lives will be together?” “I felt their love. It is very strong and beautiful. They will be together, of that I am certain.” Damien looked at her wistfully. “And now, Eleanor, my dear, it is time for you and I to say goodbye.” “Yes, I suppose it is.”

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“Jacob is waiting outside for you.” Damien kissed her on the forehead. His lips felt cold against her skin. “Safe travels, my friend,” he said against her hair. Eleanor felt tears in her eyes. She pulled back and took his face in her hands. “Safe travels, Damien. God bless you.” In the hall, she ran into Mike. “Heading out?” he asked “Yes,” she said, wiping tears away from her eyes. “Well, lady, what can I say? You are a smart-ass-pain-in-the-rear, but it’s been a slice, a real—” Eleanor cut him off by grabbing him in a big hug and planting a kiss on his lips. “Goodbye, Mike, and thanks for everything.” Mike pulled back, his face as crimson as his hair. “Well, hey, you can say goodbye to me anytime. See yah, Ellie.” “See yah, Mike. I hope you catch that whale soon.” Mike groaned and went into the library. Eleanor went to the front door, her stomach in knots. Jacob. How would she say goodbye to Jacob? Emptiness flooded through her at the thought of never seeing him again. She’d felt so alive since she met him. Was it possible to fall in love so quickly? Was she in love? It’s not as if she’d had time to examine her feelings. Most of the time at the party, he’d been pushing, pulling or kissing her. In spite of how afraid she’d been, it had felt wonderful, all that touching. And what if Simon had waited a few more minutes to come and get them? She would have made love to him right there, under the balcony, against the wall. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind. She’d never been like that with any other man. Crazy with passion. Just thinking about it made her ache with need.

***** Jacob’s emotions spun out of control. Weakened by the struggle to win Alice back from Constantine, he had no reserve to wrestle with newfound feelings. All he could do was hold on while powerful wants and needs flashed through his head, leaving him grasping for control. He was not like the other partners. He’d watched Aiden, Luke and the rest engage in one affair after another, making a contest of it all. Who would win the fair maiden and make her his? He never joined in, determined not to go down that path. It had taken him years to wade through the endless pain and guilt of losing everyone he loved. In the end, the only way he’d been able to survive was to build strong walls between himself and the rest of the world. He didn’t let people within his walls, it wasn’t worth the pain when they left. When his physical needs grew too strong for him to ignore, he went to

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professionals. Women who wanted nothing from him but money. He rarely sought out the same woman twice, and if he felt they were getting attached, he never saw them again. It had worked well for him, this arrangement, until he’d bumped into Eleanor Hennen at the fundraiser. Ever since that night—was it only three nights ago?—his carefully built walls had started crumbling. From their first meeting, the connection between them kept getting stronger. His actions at the party tonight left him wondering who he was. He couldn’t believe he’d jeopardized her safety by losing control. What happened underneath the balcony was inexcusable on his part. He was charged with protecting her and instead, he’d left them open to any sort of attack. If Simon hadn’t come… He gripped the railing of the porch as his body reacted. If Simon hadn’t come, he’d have taken Eleanor in the open, against a wall, no better than a rutting animal. She deserved better than that. She deserved flowers and soft words spoken over months of careful courtship. When he took her, there should be candles and a warm fire crackling next to a large bed so they’d have room to… He groaned as the thought of what he’d do with her in that big bed sent him spinning again, both emotionally and physically. He could not have her, he told himself, gripping the handrail so hard it broke loose with a loud crack. Disgusted, he threw the rail into the grass and straightened, determined to regain control. She would be out soon and he had to prepare what he would say to her. He knew what he wanted. He wanted to sweep her up in his arms, carry her to his bedroom and make love to her until neither of them could move. He wanted to be so deep inside her he couldn’t tell where he stopped and she began. When it was over, he wanted to hold her against him, every inch of their bodies touching, until she fell asleep in his arms, sated. But then what? There was no tomorrow for them, only tonight. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t keep her with him. It would be dangerous within the circle from now on. Anyone associated with Damien would be a target for Constantine. The opening volleys of this battle had been exchanged and only God knew where it would end. He would not let Eleanor be used as a pawn in a game she had no knowledge of or connection to. For her own safety, he had to let her walk away. That left tonight. He knew she wanted him. Her response in his arms had been real, but would she accept just one night with him? If they did spend the night together, wouldn’t it make it harder to let her go in the morning? Taking a few deep breaths to clear his head, he leaned against the wall. No, he would put aside what he wanted and do what was best for Eleanor. He would let her go. Without so much as a single caress, he would let her go. There was no other option. He was ready now. He would make it quick and clear and send her on her way. Two minutes later, all his good intentions fled, along with every other thought in

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his head, as Eleanor stepped through the door. He was waiting for her on the porch, casually leaning against the wall. He straightened and came to her. They stared at each other for a long moment. Eleanor took a step away. “Jacob,” she began, but she didn’t get the chance to continue. Jacob closed the distance between them and pulled her into his arms. He kissed her again and it was like it had been at the party. Eleanor kissed him back with everything she had. He pulled her tighter against him and said hoarsely, “I want you, Eleanor, God how I want you.” She said his name over and over, kissing her way to his neck. He pushed her against the wall and his hands cupped her breasts. She was lost again. Lost in the feel of his hands and mouth on her. She didn’t care they were out in the open where anyone could see. She didn’t care if she hardly knew him. All that mattered was the way he made her feel. All that mattered was he didn’t stop. But he did stop. He pulled away from her, breathing heavily. “I don’t want to take you like this. Not here. Not you. We have only this one night, Eleanor. Do you understand? You have to know that before we go any farther.” Eleanor felt cold inside. “Are you really going to walk away?” “I have no choice. There is no place for you in my life.” “You could make one if you really wanted to,” she said. “Oh, love, if only that were true.” She looked at him, really looked at him. His face was weary and sad. He looked like he had the first night she met him, outside Sophia’s restaurant. So lonely. She wanted to hold him and tell him everything would be all right. To offer him comfort and love. To accept his offer. It didn’t matter if it was only for one night. But she couldn’t. If she gave any more of herself to him, there would be nothing left when he was gone. She touched his cheek tenderly. “Well, I’ve never been a one-night stand kind of girl and I don’t think I’ll start now. So can I just say ‘no thank you’ and leave?” Jacob closed his eyes in pain. He put his hand over hers on his cheek. He opened his eyes and said, “I wish it could be different. I wish I’d met you long ago, when I was free.” Seeing his pain almost made her change her mind. But no, she thought. If she couldn’t have him for more than one night, it was best to cut her losses and run. Her heart couldn’t take much more. “I’d better go. Alice and Bobby are waiting for me. We have to go to the police.” She couldn’t look at his face any longer. She pulled him against her. “Take care of yourself for me, Jacob.” Sure she felt her heart breaking, she pushed away from him and started walking to her car. “Eleanor,” he called after her in an anguished voice.

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Hope fluttered through her as she turned and looked at his beautiful face. She waited a moment for him to say something. To beg her to stay. When he only stood, looking at her with pleading eyes, she shrugged, shook her head and walked to her car. He hadn’t called out to her again. All the way home, she felt too dead inside to cry. That was it, she thought. All over and done, amen. She would go back to her life before she met him and try to pick up the pieces. It wasn’t until two weeks later, after the dreams had started, that she missed her shawl.

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Chapter Eleven She stood in the exact center of a grand ballroom. Above, a crystal chandelier tinkled softly as its light fell around her in rainbow prisms. Looking down, she saw she was dressed in a midnight blue velvet gown that fell from a tight, low-cut bodice to swirl around her feet. The material felt wonderful against her skin. Turning, she realized she was alone in the room, except for a man who conducted an orchestra she could hear but not see. The orchestra played a hauntingly beautiful waltz and she started dancing, her arms held out to an imaginary partner. With so much room to move, she indulged her every whim and whirled across the floor, delighting in the way her skirt blossomed around her. As she danced, she caught sight of a man standing in the main entrance. “Eleanor,” he called and disappeared. The voice was familiar but she couldn’t place it. It called again from farther off. “Eleanor, help me.” Stopping briefly to pick up her skirt, she ran after the man. The skirt, so light when she was dancing, became incredibly heavy and hard to move in. When she reached the entrance, she saw the man disappearing through a door far down a dimly lit hallway with ivy growing up the walls. The ivy moved in a wave pattern as if beckoning her to follow, reminding her of a crawling snake. Fear bubbled up her throat. “Come to me, Eleanor.” The voice drifted down the hall. “Jacob,” she called after him. “Is that you? Wait for me. I can’t run in this dress.” Holding up yards of material, she struggled down the hall. It felt like wading through deep water. The dress got heavier, harder to hold up. It kept wrapping itself around her legs, impeding her progress. The door stood open a crack when she reached it. As she pushed against it, it creaked and groaned, like a drawbridge rather than a small door. Inside, she found a library with odd books whose inside pages were not the same size as their covers. The books were stacked in tall lopsided towers, creating a maze of sorts. Frog bookends sat on top of the towers, winking at her. Some of the frogs were alive, catching huge dragonflies with their impossibly long tongues. People came toward her from the shadows. Old people, whose skin hung off their bones in grotesque shapes. They reached for her, moaning words she couldn’t understand. As the first one touched her, she screamed and beat at him. Desperate, she turned to an open door leading off to the left. She picked up books and threw them at the people advancing toward her, all the while struggling with the heavy skirt that had grown in length. A cold hand latched on to her wrist and she

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screamed and pushed it away. The woman who’d been attached to her wrist crashed into the advancing crowd, sending them all stumbling backward, like antique bowling pins. Frantic now, she staggered out the door and slammed it behind her. As her breathing slowed, she stopped a moment to take in her surroundings. She was on a balcony overlooking a bedroom. Below her, a large four-poster bed dominated the room. A man was in the bed, his face hidden by a pillow. “Eleanor, come to me.” The voice called to her again. Holding tight to the railing, she went down the metal spiral staircase and approached the bed. “Jacob,” she said, “is it you? Have you come back for me?” She went to the bed and reached for the pillow. A hand shot up from under the covers and grabbed her wrist. As the man sat up, the pillow fell away to reveal not Jacob, but Constantine. He looked at her with sadness in his eyes. “Why do you stay away, Eleanor? I need you so. Will you not help me?” He pulled her closer to him. “You are mine now. The others have left you for me. Jacob does not want you. He tossed you away. But I want you. I want you very much indeed. Come to me, Eleanor. Now!” Eleanor felt the telephoto lens click and Constantine’s face changed into Jacob’s. It clicked again and changed back to Constantine. Maniacal laughter echoed all around her as the lens clicked back and forth too fast for her eyes to focus. A scream tore from her throat. “Ellie, Ellie honey, wake up.” Eleanor shot up in bed, still screaming. Her heart raced and her nightgown was drenched. “Ellie, it’s me, Alice. Are you okay? You were having one of those dreams again.” Eleanor looked at Alice, trying to focus. Part of her was back in the bedroom with Constantine, or was it Jacob? Alice took her in her arms. “Oh, Ellie, this is my fault. If I’d only been stronger, none of this would have happened. I’m so sorry. What can I do for you? Would you like a glass of water?” Eleanor nodded, unable to speak because the shaking had started. That’s always the next step, the shaking. Soon I’ll start to calm down. Just hang on a few more minutes. Keep it together until Alice leaves. Alice came back with a glass of water and Eleanor took it gratefully. The cool water soothed her scream-raw throat. “Ellie, I really think you should see a doctor about this.” Alice sat on the bed. “You need some help. Bobby knows a few people you could go to.” “I know you mean well, but I don’t think any doctor is going to be able to help me.” The shaking was getting easier to manage. She could feel her muscles starting to relax. Almost over. “Look, Alice, it’s three-thirty in the morning. How about we try to get some

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sleep and talk about this in the morning?” “Do you go back to sleep after these nightmares?” “Sure, I sleep like a baby. Go back to bed and thanks for waking me up.” Tears filled her sister’s eyes. “Oh, Ellie, I wish you’d let me help you.” “Nothing you can do this time. Now go to bed. I’ll see you in the morning.” Alice gave her another quick hug and left the room. Alone, Eleanor could release the tears she’d been holding back. She cried now as she always did, silently. The tears ran down her cheeks with only sharp intakes of breath to accompany them. Hopeless crying. She couldn’t muster enough energy for a good weep. It wasn’t the good old-fashioned crying jags she used to have. When those were over, she’d felt cleansed and renewed. These were fruitless, pathetic descents into despair and she hated giving in to them. Getting up, she went into the bathroom, splashed cold water on her face and toweled dry. Movement in the mirror caught her eye and it took her a few seconds to realize the tired, haggard-looking woman was her. “Hello, beautiful,” she said. “Lucky I’m a voice artist and not a model.” The dark circles under her eyes had reached biblical proportions. Limp, dull hair framed her pinched, almost unrecognizable face. She even thought her eye color had faded. Maybe Alice was right. Maybe she should see a doctor. But what would she say? “Well, Doc, it’s like this. Three months ago I met a man who I think is the love of my life. I only knew him three days, but big deal. Shit happens. He felt real bad about leaving me, but he had to go off with his partner, the atmosphere-changing, powerwielding, Moby-Dick-reading member of a secret race of people who can suck the youth out of us. So, okay, Doc, do you have a pill for that, or do I just exercise more and think happy thoughts?” Yeah, that would go over like a lead balloon. At best, she’d be put on some medication that didn’t let her feel anything, at worst, she’d be put in a nice home somewhere so she couldn’t hurt herself or scare the nice people. Anyway, she couldn’t tell a doctor anything. She’d promised Damien she would keep it secret. I don’t understand, she thought for the hundredth time. Everything had been fine at first. Sure, she was hurt, angry and very disappointed when Jacob left. But after a few days without his presence to remind her, she’d convinced herself she’d imagined how good it had been between them. Everything had gone back to normal. Detectives Comstock and Farmer accepted the story they’d concocted. That is, they left it alone after Eleanor called in a favor from Mr. Montgomery, City Council member. She knew Detective Comstock didn’t believe it. After four days of Eleanor, Alice and Bobby sticking to their story about an anonymous tip, and Alice being too drugged to recall what had happened, Detective Farmer had washed his hands of the case. Comstock had pulled Eleanor aside for a private discussion. “Look,” he said, giving

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her a hard-assed stare. “If you think I buy this for one second, you’re wrong. To begin with, your sister can’t lie worth a damn. And you and that Bobby fella have been so jumpy, I’m expecting you to explode any minute. So let’s just get that straight right now, okay. I’m not buying.” Each word of the last sentence was accented by his fist pounding the desk in front of him. “But I’m only a lowly detective. There’s not much I can do when you start calling in favors from somebody like Montgomery. So I’m going to drop it. But let me tell you this. If one more woman goes missing like your sister, I’m going to be back on the three of you like flies on shit. You got that, Miss Hennen?” “Yes, Detective,” Eleanor said, meekly. She knew when not to press her advantage. “I don’t like to be made a fool of, that’s all.” He got up and opened his office door. “Now get out of here before I change my mind.” Eleanor almost ran out of the police station. After that, Eleanor went back to her life. At her request, her agent booked as many jobs as he could for her. Even jobs she would usually turn down, just to keep busy. Afraid to sit alone and brood, she met friends for lunch and dinner and broke her personal record by going to four movies in one week. It was bittersweet to watch Alice and Bobby together. They were so happy in their newfound love. Eleanor lost track of the times she walked into a room and saw them jump apart. The first time had been weird. Seeing her sister and best friend kissing all hot and heavy was odd on a few different levels. But it was hard to keep feeling that way when she saw how they were with each other. Just like Mom and Dad, she thought. A part of her couldn’t help but feel jealous. It just wasn’t for the obvious reason. She was jealous because she was not the number one person in either of their lives anymore. They’d replaced her with each other. There was no room between the two of them for her anymore. It was lonely, being on the outside looking in. Sometimes it seemed their happiness intensified her unhappiness by comparison. She’d been worried about Alice at first. When Bobby wasn’t around, she’d find her sister sitting alone, deep in thought, her face looking haunted. Eleanor would always ask how she was doing, and Alice would snap out of it, smile and say everything was fine. About a week after they’d rescued Alice, the three of them were together around the television for movie night. They were watching a Sherlock Holmes marathon on an oldies channel. Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce were doing their best to foil Professor Moriarty in The Woman in Green. Moriarty had hooked up with a group of hypnotists who could turn normal people into assassins. A beautiful woman was hypnotizing Holmes with just her voice and a single flower floating in a bowl. Alice started to fidget as the scene went on. Eleanor thought it was time to get this all out in the open. “What was it like, Al?” she asked gently. “When you were away. Do you remember?” Alice stared at her hands for a long time. Bobby rubbed her back. “You don’t have to say anything,” he said. “It’s okay, you can wait until you’re ready. Or, if you decide 86

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never to talk about it, that’s fine too.” “It’s all so cloudy now.” Alice sighed and looked up at both of them with tears in her eyes. “The more time goes by, the less I can remember. I still get flashes of his face. I can feel his hands on me sometimes. The odd thing is, it doesn’t upset me much. I think Damien did something to me to help block the worst of it.” Alice looked down at her hands again. “Sometimes, when I was sitting alone in that room, I would start to come out of it. I would realize something was wrong. But then he would come in and look at me and everything would change. I could only focus on him, nothing else was important. I think about it now and it seems so spooky and horrible, but when it was happening, it felt wonderful. I can’t believe I was so weak.” She started to cry softly. Bobby took her gently by the shoulders. “I don’t think weakness had anything to do with it. We don’t know enough about all this to guess what kind of power that monster had. You were strong enough to come back to us and that’s all that matters.” “What was the last part like?” Eleanor asked. “The part with Damien. It sure looked amazing from where I was standing. How did it feel?” Shaking her head, Alice wiped the tears away. “It was so odd. I could feel Damien and Bobby on the other side of some kind of barrier. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t push through to them. Constantine was holding on to me. It was spooky because I couldn’t see him but I could feel his presence. I kept looking at Bobby. I wanted to get back to him so badly. I’ve loved him such a long time. Almost from the first time you brought him here. But you two were such good friends and I didn’t want to do anything that would endanger your relationship. Besides, I didn’t know if Bobby felt the same way. I was afraid of making a fool of myself.” Bobby kissed her on the forehead. “You weren’t the only one who was afraid of making a fool of themselves. We wasted so much time.” “What happened next, Al?” Eleanor asked. “I could feel Damien and Constantine struggling over me. It didn’t hurt, but I felt stretched thin, like I was the rope in a tug-of-war game. Damien started to weaken and I thought I would never break through. But then I felt a surge from Damien and suddenly Jacob was there with him. A small hole opened in the barrier and I could feel Bobby on the other side of it. I knew what he was feeling, we were joined somehow. He loved me as much as I loved him. We could have the rest of our lives together if I could get to the other side of the barrier. I went toward the hole and pushed my way through and it was over. There you all were. Constantine was gone. It was the most amazing experience.” “Is that how it was for you, Bobby?” Eleanor asked. “Well, almost. Except there was no tug-of-war going on over me. I felt Damien using me as a conduit or something, to send whatever it was through. I could feel something flowing through my body to Alice. And then, when she broke through, when she came to me…” He looked at Alice and kissed her hand. “It was the most

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beautiful moment of my life.” Eleanor felt superfluous as she watched the two of them. She looked at the television to give them what privacy she could without leaving the room. On screen, Holmes hadn’t really been hypnotized. His will was too strong for that. She wondered how old Sherlock would have done against Constantine. The first dream happened a week later. At first, they weren’t bad. She hardly remembered them. There was only a vague feeling of unease when she woke. Over time, they grew in intensity and detail, until now they were taking over not only her sleeping hours, but were invading her waking hours as well. All day long, parts of her dreams would pop into her head. She was worn out, exhausted. Something had to give soon or she would fall over. Part of her wished she would and that scared her more than the dreams. She came back to herself in a rush. How long had she been standing in the bathroom looking at her reflection? This happened all the time now. Like some crazed zombie, she would zone out, get lost in her thoughts. When she came to, she had no idea how long she’d been daydreaming. Going back into the bedroom, she checked the clock. It was four-fifteen. Another forty-five minutes lost. Maybe she could get some more sleep. This could be one of the lucky nights when her body shut down and took the sleep it needed. Scrambling under the covers, she allowed herself one indulgent moment of longing. Jacob, she missed him so.

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Chapter Twelve Jacob was furious. They’d lost them. Constantine, or someone with him, had been more cunning than he’d given them credit for. They made a clean getaway, no trail, no loose ends, nothing. He cursed himself for being so stupid. Why hadn’t he left someone watching the estate? Constantine had been so arrogant Jacob didn’t think it was necessary. He knew Constantine. It was out of character for him to plan in advance like this. Con had always been a seat-of-your-pants kind of man. It was Christopher who was the brains in that Dyad. Someone must be guiding and advising Constantine. But who? Certainly not Simon. Constantine wasn’t listening to him anymore. Elsbeth Cummings? Maybe, but she hadn’t struck Jacob as particularly intelligent or cunning. It had to be someone they hadn’t met. Jacob didn’t like unknown threats. They were almost impossible to plan for. “Damn,” he said out loud, throwing the snowball he’d formed far out onto the frozen lake. Why had it taken so long for the Diarchy to decide what to do? If they’d acted three months ago, as Damien and David had urged, it would all be over now. Instead, they’d debated and pondered every option until all were in agreement, giving Constantine the time he needed to grow in strength. The situation had escalated from a minor annoyance in the Balance to a major break in the flow. Christopher could no longer feel Constantine. Where once Christopher could have felt his way to Constantine’s general location, now there was only emptiness. Everyone in the Diarchy felt the moment when Christopher lost his link with Constantine. It had shaken them to the core of what they were. It’s what finally moved them to act. They’d sent two Dyads and their partners to deal with Constantine. The Stewarts and the Goddards. The Stewart Dyad was made up of Damien and David with their partners Jacob and Aidan. The Goddard Dyad consisted of Sebastian and Samuel with Luke and Emil as their partners. They’d been given the task of bringing Constantine back into the Balance and cleaning up the damage he’d caused. The two groups arrived at the estate last week to find Constantine gone. The estate was not deserted, however. Constantine had left behind his castoffs, thirteen in all. People so dried up and drained Jacob thought they might not be salvageable. The thirteen had met them at the door as if they had been waiting for them. Jacob recognized the old man, Thomas Kent, who’d ushered them in three months ago. He’d shuffled up to them and said, “At last you have come. Constantine has left us as his gift to you. We offer ourselves freely. Do with us as you will.” He thought he was offering them something of great value. He had no idea the abomination they represented. 89

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Leaving these people behind had been Constantine’s way of throwing down a gauntlet. He’d broken every rule of the Diarchy and was rubbing their faces in it. Even the number of people he left was offensive. There was no Balance in thirteen. Once they had determined Constantine was indeed gone, they’d set to work healing the castoffs. It was taking too long, Jacob thought. Each person took days to heal. Each healing session drained the Dyad. They had to rest and recover between sessions. After they were healed, each person had to be reinserted back into their life as inconspicuously as possible. Their memories had to be modified. The time they were missing had to be accounted for. It was going to take weeks, and they didn’t have weeks. It was only a matter of time before Constantine did something to draw attention to himself. The Diarchy had existed as long as it had because of the absolute secrecy to which each member adhered. Constantine could blow it all wide open. To begin with, there was still the problem of how to find Constantine. As they healed the castoffs, they checked carefully for some trace of Con. Even a small flicker of his essence could lead them to him. After a particularly draining healing, Damien had turned to Jacob and said, “He has left nothing behind of himself in these people. He is truly gone. And the way he drained them is heinous. He had no intention of giving back what he had taken. How could he be so cruel? How could he have strayed so far from us?” Now, days later, both Dyads were resting from the last healing session. Luke and Emil were taking the latest person healed back to Minneapolis and his home and family. Aidan and Mike were walking the perimeter. Jacob had gone down to the lakeshore to think through their options. They would have to split up, he thought. One group could stay and keep healing, the other could search for Constantine. It should be Damien and David who searched. They had been close friends of Constantine and his Dyad brother, Christopher. They should send for Christopher and his partner, James. If they did manage to find Constantine, they would need Christopher’s help. Constantine was much stronger than anyone suspected. It was best to go in with all available weapons in your arsenal, especially when unsure of your opponent’s strength. Jacob turned away from the lake and headed to the house. He followed the trail in the snow he’d made earlier. It took him underneath the balcony of the house, to the exact spot he’d been with Eleanor. Even though the area looked completely different now, covered with snow and ice, his eyes went to the part of the wall he’d pushed her up against. He’d tried not to think about her, but he might as well have tried to stop breathing. She’d gotten under his skin and into his psyche so much that even now, three months later, just the sight of where he had held her so closely sent every other thought out of his head. Her lips, her neck, her breasts, all flashed through his mind in steamy, erotic pictures. Her smell, the way she tasted, how she felt beneath his hands, all came back to

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him in a rush that left him hard and aching with need. Jacob shook his head, trying to clear it. Here he was in subzero cold, all hot and hard because of a memory. If it were only the physical things about Eleanor he longed for, he would have tried to drive her out with another woman. A woman who was willing to take a one-night stand, if that was all he had to offer. But it wasn’t just her body and how good he imagined sex with her would be that filled his sleepless nights. It was everything else about her that haunted him, her pride, her courage, the twinkle in her eye when she was telling a joke, her frustration at not being able to ask any questions, the love she felt for her family, the way she looked at him when she thought he wasn’t looking. He missed all of it. All of her. He couldn’t drive Eleanor out with another woman and he knew better than to try. He had to keep reminding himself she had been the one who walked away. Sometimes he fantasized showing up at her door. She would take one look at him and fall into his arms. Jacob had driven halfway to the city two nights ago to do just that. He stopped himself by remembering the look on her face as she walked away from him. There had been so much pain. How could he do that to her again? Nothing had changed. She wasn’t willing to take what he had to offer. Maybe she’d been right. Maybe it would be worse if they’d made love all night as he’d wanted. It was hard to imagine anything worse than the longing he felt now, but maybe wanting and knowing were two different things. Damien’s voice called out to him. Hurrying up the spiral staircase, he went into what had been Constantine’s room. Damien sat on the sofa looking very tired. All this healing has taken its toll. Jacob went to Damien and offered him his hand. “Thank you, Jacob.” Damien sighed. “I’m afraid I have need of you. David is sleeping and I do not wish to wake him.” Jacob closed his hand over Damien’s. He felt the familiar pull of his strength flowing out of him and into Damien. Never enough to deplete him, just enough for Damien to function at full strength. Damien’s face relaxed, the tight lines around his eyes and mouth softened. Breathing deeply, he let go of Jacob’s hand and looked up with a sad smile. “You still think of her. She is everywhere in your mind.” He should’ve known Damien would pick up his thoughts about Eleanor. Unable to meet his partner’s eyes, he looked away. “Yes, I think of her,” he choked out. Damien stood and put a hand on his shoulder. “Why do you not go to her? If she feels the same, it is a crime to be apart. The feelings you have for her are strong. I have never felt you like this.” Jacob kept his face averted. “She said no.” Damien turned Jacob to face him. “She said no to one night. Is that truly what you want from Eleanor, only one night?” “Anything else is impossible and you know it.”

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“That is not true, Jacob. You have seen others work out ways to have their women with them. If you want Eleanor beside you, we will find a way.” “She will end up hurt and alone. I won’t do that to her.” “Ah, Jacob, there is truly no one else like you. You are more like her sister Alice than…” Damien stopped talking, deep in thought. He turned to Jacob. “We have been looking in the wrong place. To find a link to Constantine we must check someone he was with before he grew powerful enough to erase himself as he has done with the people here. We must check Alice Hennen.” “I don’t know,” Jacob said. “We expelled him. Could there be any link left?” “It is possible, certainly worth checking. We must leave at once. I will tell David, you ready the car. If nothing else, we will get away from this horrid place for an evening. You could see Eleanor again.” “No,” Jacob said sharply. “We must get in and away again without Eleanor knowing. Anything else will cause her pain.” Damien looked at Jacob and shook his head. “As you wish.”

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Chapter Thirteen Eleanor stood in a soundproof-glass booth at the studio. She was having a hard time with the jingle she was singing. A cute little song from a puppy’s point of view. Today, she sang the merits of Proud Puppy’s Potty Training Pads. Her mind just wouldn’t focus on the puppy’s story of how happy his human was to see him every night because of no accidents on the rug. “Eleanor, would you like a break?” asked a voice from the speakers. Thank God it wasn’t Ernie’s, she thought. That’s all she needed. This director’s name was Gabe Andrews. Eleanor didn’t know him very well, but he was so much easier to work with than Ernie. “What do you think, Eleanor?” Gabe asked. “Would a break help?” “No, I can do this.” Eleanor turned and looked back at him in the booth. “Please, can I try one more time?” “Sure, are you still clear on what I am looking for? Make him as young and innocent as possible and don’t forget how proud he is.” “Yes, I understand what you want,” she said. “Young and innocent.” The trouble was, she felt old and jaded. Eleanor turned back around and faced the microphone. Concentrate. If you can get this one jingle out of the way, you can go home and go to bed. It was easier to sleep during the day when the dreams were not as bad and she desperately needed some uninterrupted sleep. Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly and reached for the last of her energy. “Now, please,” she said and the music started. Digging deep, she managed to find her talent this time. For thirty seconds she sang as a little puppy filled with the joys of potty training. “That’s it,” Gabe said when she finished. “I knew you could do it.” Eleanor had used up her reserve. Her knees shook and she sat down hard on the stool behind her. “So, is that a wrap, Gabe?” she asked. “Yeah, sure, I can get what I need from that last track, but I’d like to talk to you before you go, okay?” “Sure,” Eleanor said, trying to catch her breath. She gathered up her things and met Gabe at the studio door. “Are you sure you’re feeling all right, Eleanor? You look done in. I could give you a ride home if you like.” “Do I look that bad?” Gabe colored. “No, no, that’s not what I meant. You look tired, that’s all. I think you

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look wonderful. You always look wonderful.” Eleanor gave him her dubious look. “Well, thanks, but I don’t feel very wonderful right now.” “How about a cup of coffee or a drink? I’m done here for the day.” Was he asking her out on a date? That had come out of the blue. She used to be better at this. She used to be able to tell when a man was working up to ask her out. Looking up, she managed a smile. “Thanks, but I think I’ll just go home. Some other time maybe.” Gabe looked disappointed. “Some other time, as in some other time ask me again, or some other time I’m not interested, leave me alone?” Eleanor didn’t have the energy to verbally spar with him. “Look, Gabe, I’m getting over a bad one. You don’t want to be around me right now, really.” He gave her a searching look. “Okay, I’m going to take that as a try again later. “Seriously, Eleanor, I don’t know who this idiot was or what he did to you, but he’s not worth what you seem to be going through. You deserve better and trust me, I’m better.” The smile he gave her had a challenge in it. Eleanor smiled back. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, Gabe. You’ve been very nice to me today. Most directors wouldn’t have put up with me like this.” “Well, I’m not most directors. I’m one of a kind.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her. She giggled. “There we go,” he said. “I thought I could get at least a smile out of you.” His eyes turned serious. “Everything else aside, if you need to talk to someone, no strings attached, I’m a good listener. I know the female psyche. Just ask my five sisters.” “Thanks, I may take you up on that.” “Here’s my card.” He dug a card out of his suit coat and gave it to her. “Call anytime.” “Thanks again, Gabe. I better go. Goodbye.” She offered her hand to him. He looked at her a moment as if searching for something then took her hand and warmly shook it. “Goodbye, Eleanor, and take care of yourself.” Driving home, Eleanor thought how unfair life was. Any other time, she would have accepted Gabe’s offer in a hot minute. He was handsome, intelligent and he had a fun sense of humor. They would be great together, she was sure of it. But she couldn’t go out with anyone now. Not when she had nothing to offer. Not when each day was worse than the one before. When she got to her house, she drove through the alley to her parking place in back. Since the heavy snow started, she had to park off the street and it was Alice’s turn for the one car garage. They alternated even and odd days. Eleanor had odd. How appropriate, she thought. Going in the back door to the kitchen, she shrugged out of her heavy coat and mittens. She froze, listening. A familiar voice came from the living room—Damien. I really am losing my mind, she thought. Her feet started moving toward the voice. She 94

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couldn’t stop them. Reaching the living room door, she stopped to listen before entering. It was Damien, there was no mistaking that voice. “It is not here, Jacob,” Damien said. “There is no trace of him. I am afraid we did too good a job expelling him.” And then Eleanor heard the voice she’d been waiting for. “I was hoping I was wrong,” Jacob said. Hearing his voice brought everything back to her. His beautiful face, the feeling of his lips on hers, his smell of leather and pine, his hands stroking her body to life, it all came back in a flood, as if the last three months of hell had never happened. She couldn’t kid herself that what she felt for him wasn’t real, but part of a fantasy she’d built up. Emotionally, she was right back to the night she’d walked away from him. Her heart sped up at the thought of seeing him again and she felt better than she had in months. Eleanor took a step into the room. Damien and Jacob stood on either side of Alice, who sat in the upright easy chair. Alice’s eyes had a faraway look and her face was blank. Neither of the men saw Eleanor. “Bring her out of it, Damien,” Jacob said. “We must leave before anyone else comes home.” Eleanor stifled a cry. Jacob hadn’t come back for her. He wanted to get away without even seeing her. All the excitement and hope she felt turned into pain and embarrassment. She ducked quickly out of the room, but she couldn’t walk away. Instead, she stayed close to the open door, listening. “Alice, Alice, wake up now. Can you hear me?” Damien said. “Yes, yes, I can hear you,” Alice said in a dazed voice. “Did it work? Did you find what you were looking for?” “No, I am afraid not,” Damien said. “We thank you for letting us try.” “I owe you so much and anything I can do to stop…him,” Alice said, faltering. “How is Bobby?” Damien asked. “He’s wonderful. We’re getting married in the spring.” “My congratulations,” Damien said. “I am sure you will have a beautiful life together. I am sorry we have to rush away. I would like to hear all about your plans, but we really must be going.” “Couldn’t you stay a little longer?” Alice said. “I’m sure Eleanor and Bobby would like to see you. They’ll be so disappointed if they miss you.” “It might be better if they never found out we were here,” Jacob said. In the hallway, Eleanor felt another pang in her heart. He really doesn’t want to see me, she thought. “How is Eleanor?” Damien asked. “Is she still ferocious in her protection of you?” “I’m afraid Eleanor is not doing so well these days,” Alice said.

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“What do you mean?” Jacob asked in a tight voice. “Well, I know she tries to hide it, but there’s something wrong with her. She isn’t sleeping or eating much. She walks around in a daze most of the time and she has the worst nightmares.” “What kind of nightmares?” Damien asked, sounding very interested. “She won’t tell me much. I hear her most nights, moaning in her sleep. Sometimes she wakes up screaming.” “How long has this been going on?” Jacob asked. Eleanor heard Alice get up and walk a few steps. “Almost three months. At first, I thought it was a natural reaction to everything that’d happened. Not that I know exactly what happened to her. She won’t tell me about it. I want her to go to a doctor, but she won’t.” “Where is Eleanor now?” Damien asked. Eleanor didn’t want to see them anymore. Not if it was going to be a pity-Eleanor party. Why did Alice have to tell them? Walking quickly toward the kitchen, her foot caught on her mother’s hen doorstop and it made a loud noise. Three sets of footsteps came toward her and she retreated into the kitchen, frantically looking around for something to do so they wouldn’t find her standing there with guilt written all over her face. She went to the coffee maker and took down the filters from the cabinet above. The footsteps came into the kitchen. Not wanting to turn and face them, she went through the motions of making coffee. “Eleanor,” Jacob said. Straightening to her full height, she turned around as nonchalantly as possible and took a quick look at the three of them. Feeling ashamed suddenly, she lost her false bravado. “Eleanor, what has happened to you,” Jacob said. He reached for her. “Do not touch her, Jacob,” Damien said sharply. Eleanor’s head snapped up. Who did they think they were coming in here after three months and asking what had happened to her? They happened to her. Throwing the coffee filters across the room, she planted herself for a fight. “You should go, okay? I’m fine…and I want you to go. Leave. Now.” “Ellie, what’s the matter,” Alice said, coming to her. “It’s Damien and Jacob, honey. We owe them so much. How can you be so rude to them?” “I know who they are, Alice. I’m not that far gone. I want them to leave. I don’t want them back in my life,” she ended, screaming the words at them. Eleanor felt dizzy and nauseated. All these strong emotions swirling around inside her were making her ill. She needed to sit down, she needed…and then she was falling. She felt Jacob catch her and lift her in his arms. He carried her to the living room

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and laid her gently on the sofa. “Try not to touch her skin,” she heard Damien warn the others. “What do you mean by that?” Alice said, coming in behind them. “What is wrong with her? Do you know?” “I am afraid I do,” Damien said, sitting down on the sofa next to Eleanor. “Eleanor,” he said softly. “Eleanor, do you feel well enough to answer some questions?” Eleanor’s head spun. She tried to focus on Damien. “Sure,” she managed to say. “Ask me whatever you want. It’s not as if I can stop you, is it?” She saw Damien and Jacob exchange a dark look. Jacob came up to the back of the sofa and looked down at her. Damien turned back to her and asked, “Do you remember the night of the party?” “Of course I do. I haven’t completely lost my mind.” “Did you touch anything besides the furniture?” “No, I don’t think so. You warned me not to.” “Very good,” Damien said. “Now, think very carefully. Did you bring anything away with you from that house?” “No, you warned me about that too. Besides, who would want a souvenir from a place like that?” Damien thought for a minute. “I do not understand. He never touched her. I was with him the entire time she was there. He could not have marked her without my seeing it.” Eleanor shot up to a sitting position and screamed at Damien. “He has my shawl!” Jacob leaned over the back of the sofa. “What?” “My shawl, my shawl, I must have left it there. I didn’t realize it was missing until later, after the dreams started.” “You left something of yours behind?” Damien asked. “A shawl?” “Yes, my grandmother’s shawl.” “Damn,” Jacob cried, “all this time he has been linked to you.” Jacob turned her to look at him. “What has he done to you?” he asked sharply. “What has he made you do?” Eleanor shrank back from him, ashamed. Damien gently removed Jacob’s hold on her. “Please, Eleanor, tell me about your dreams.” Eleanor looked at each of them. She didn’t want to tell them about her dreams. If she kept them a secret, she could keep pretending they were only dreams. “Eleanor, please, tell us,” Jacob said. He tucked a curl behind her ear. When she looked at him all her fear melted away. It was his eyes. They were so kind and concerned.

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“He’s in them,” she whispered. “Constantine. Every night it’s the same dream. He wants me to come to him. I don’t think it’s him at first. I think it’s…” She looked down at her hands, embarrassed. “Someone else, so I follow him. I find out it’s him after it’s too late to run.” She started to cry. “He grabs me and I try to get away. On good nights I wake up screaming when he touches me. On bad nights I…don’t.” “Oh, Ellie, no,” Alice said, taking her hand. “Why didn’t you tell me?” “It’s gotten worse,” Eleanor said, looking at Damien. “I can hear him during the day now. He keeps calling to me. I can’t concentrate on anything else. He wants me to come, now. I don’t know how much longer I can fight him.” She reached for Damien’s hand but he pulled away from her. She leaned back from him, hurt by his rebuff. “This is really happening to me, isn’t it? I’m not crazy, am I? The dreams are real. Oh God.” She dissolved into quiet tears. “Damien, can you help her?” Alice said. “Yes, a little, I think,” Damien turned to Eleanor. “Well, it seems we need your help again. Constantine is missing, and despite all our efforts we have been unable to find him. I think he has used the shawl you left behind to mark you. To link you to him. We need to use that link to locate him. Will you help us?” Eleanor punched the pillow next to her. “What choice do you ever give me? Help us or you’ll never see your sister again. Help us or you’ll go insane. It’s Constantine or you. There’s no choice here.” “There are always choices, Eleanor,” Damien said, a soft smile on his face. “If you like, Jacob and I will try to expel Constantine from you as we did with Alice. I am fairly certain we will be successful. Your life will go back to normal. Or, you can stay linked to him a while longer so we can follow the link back to him. It is your choice.” Well, here I am again, Eleanor thought. Which road do I take this time? Who do I trust? Too tired to care, she thought of one thing she wanted. “All right, I’ll help you on one condition.” “I shudder to think what that could be,” Damien said. “This time I don’t go in blind. This time you have to tell me everything, starting with who and what you are and where you came from.” Damien’s face lost its smile. “Eleanor,” he started in a reasonable tone. “No,” she interrupted him, “non-negotiable. I get to ask all the questions I want.” She looked up at Jacob. “I even get to argue if I feel like it. That’s the deal. Take it or leave it.” Jacob looked like he approved of what she was doing. Damien looked just the opposite. “Eleanor, you do not know what you are asking,” he said. “No, no, no. That’s not going to work this time. It’s everything or nothing.” Damien got up and moved away. Eleanor felt better, as if she’d gotten some of herself back. She looked up at Jacob. 98

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He smiled down at her. “You had me scared,” he said. “I thought you’d lost your fire, but I see now it was just hiding.” Eleanor started to smile back at him, but then remembered what he’d said about not wanting to see her again and she turned away from him. Alice sat down next to her. “Do you think this is a good idea? Maybe it would be better for everyone if you just let them expel him, or whatever they call it. How much more can you take, Ellie?” “I heard you in here before, Al. I know if you were me, you’d do whatever you could to help them. Don’t ask me to stop, because I can’t.” Damien came back to them. He had a grim look on his face. “All right, Eleanor. It seems I have no choice. You have a deal.” Eleanor sat up straight, swinging her feet to the floor. Now that the decision was made, she felt a prickle of fear run up her spine. She stood up and faced Damien. “What are you?” she asked. “Not so fast,” he replied. “First, do you have a sense of where Constantine is?” Eleanor thought a minute. “Yes, west. We have to head west.” “Pack a bag,” Damien said.

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Chapter Fourteen The Hummer headed west. Jacob estimated they’d been on the road seven hours and were deep into South Dakota, almost to the Badlands. It was midnight and Eleanor had finally passed out in a dreamless sleep in the backseat. Jacob smiled. Despite all her protests and clever arguments, Damien refused to answer any of her questions until she’d gotten some sleep. “Eleanor, look at you,” Damien had argued. “You can scarcely stand. You will not remember half of what I tell you. I can help you to a dreamless sleep where Constantine will not be able to reach you.” Eleanor stood her ground. “We made a deal. Are you the type of gentleman who welshes on a deal?” Damien and Jacob burst out laughing. “Touché,” Damien said. “Who and what I am will not change in the next few hours. You need to sleep. Rest, Eleanor. I will feel better when you do. I fear we are to blame for what you have been going through. Events took us far away from you and we have not watched over your family as closely as we should have.” Jacob knew the only reason Eleanor agreed was she finally ran out of energy. She must have been functioning on adrenaline alone for days and it had caught up with her. Fully intending to question Damien all the way through South Dakota, she had instead fallen asleep before they were out of the city, her head resting on Damien’s leg. Damien sent her into a deeper sleep, where Con couldn’t reach her. “What if he feels your touch?” Jacob had asked Damien. “He will not. I have clouded her mind with thoughts of sleeping pills. Con will think she has drugged herself.” Alice had had a hard time letting Eleanor go without her. Damien had explained her presence would endanger them because Constantine would be able to sense when Alice was near. Alice finally relented, but she made them promise to call at least once a day to let her know they were all right. “If I don’t hear from you I’ll get in my car and follow you. See if I don’t.” Before they’d left, Damien had asked Eleanor if she could narrow down the search to a smaller area than “west”. Eleanor had gotten a faraway look in her eyes. “He’s on a coast. I can sometimes hear the waves and smell the sea. It’s cold, so it can’t be southern California. He’s still on the same land mass I am. Don’t ask me how I know, I just do. Does that help?” Damien turned to Jacob. “When you were researching Elsbeth Cummings, did she own any homes in Northwest America or Canada?”

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“No. Nothing listed, anyway,” Jacob said. Damien looked troubled. “He must have found a different money supply. If he even approached one of our safe houses, we would know. We will head to Portland, Oregon. That is in the center of our search area.” “Why don’t we fly?” Eleanor asked. “We could be there in a few hours.” Jacob smiled and looked at his feet. Damien turned to Eleanor, indignant. “I do not fly,” he said. The Hummer passed another Wall Drug sign. Clever gimmick, he thought. He felt uneasy. Ever since Damien had agreed to answer Eleanor’s questions, he’d been worried about her reaction. What would she think of him after she knew? Would she turn away in disgust, as others had? Maybe that would be best. Being this close to Eleanor was a slow torture for Jacob. When he’d first seen her, he wanted to gather her up in his arms and comfort her. She’d looked so tired and used up. It was their fault she had suffered. No, his fault. The few times he’d been able to check on the Hennen family, his attention had been focused on Alice. He’d made every effort not to see Eleanor. The one time he did see her—running from her car to the house in the rain—had affected him so much he did not want to repeat the experience. That one glimpse of her had evoked such a longing for her and a resentment of the current situation that made it impossible for them to be together, he’d been depressed for days afterward. When he thought of what she’d been through these past months, he wanted to kill Constantine. It was not their way. He knew that. The oath he took when he became Damien’s partner was clear. “I will not kill,” he’d sworn. But when he thought of Con touching Eleanor’s creamy skin, kissing those sweet lips, or worse, hurting her—he gripped the steering wheel so hard it started to bend. Death was too good for him. Maybe he could keep his oath after all. There were worse things than dying. “Damn.” He pulled the Hummer sharply to the right. He’d almost collided with the car in the left lane. The startled driver laid on her horn and shot a lewd hand gesture his way. Balance, he told himself sternly. He knew better than to let his emotions rule his actions. Taking deep calming breaths, he relaxed his hands on the wheel. What was wrong with him? It had been years since he’d had such a slip. Of all the partners, he was the one who could be relied upon not to let human emotions cloud his judgment. A loud female snore came from the backseat. Jacob smiled and felt a surge of tenderness, another emotion he was unfamiliar with. Constantine wouldn’t touch her again. If it meant tying the woman up and sitting on her to keep her safe, she would just have to accept it. Visions of Eleanor tied to bedposts flashed through his mind and he felt himself harden. Groaning, he decided to take a break. Jacob pulled off the freeway to get some fuel. Both he and the Hummer needed replenishing. He pulled up to the pump-your-own station and got out to read the instructions. Each gas station chain was a little different. Pull the handle, don’t pull the

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handle, but push the button, pay inside before you pump, pay at the pump with a credit card. All of them differed slightly. Jacob was always careful not to draw attention because of ignorance. Keeping abreast of all the latest technology was what a good partner did. Computers and the Internet had been a challenge for him. They were such a marvel. So much more than he had ever envisioned. He had trouble grasping the enormity of it all. In the end, he’d won out by using the same technique that had served him for so long. Find your start point, find your end point and learn how to get from one to the other. It seemed simple and naïve, but it worked for him. No matter how complicated things seemed, if he broke it down and looked at it, he could master it. There was truth in the old adage, the more things change the more they stay the same. Thank God for that. He hung up the gas pump and went into the station to pay and get some sandwiches and coffee. He bought extra in case Eleanor woke up. As he was getting back into the Hummer, he noticed a white van he’d seen twice before. Minnesota plates ending in 485. Jacob was not concerned yet. Lots of people used this highway on their way to Mount Rushmore. He started the engine and headed back to the interstate.

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Chapter Fifteen Eleanor slowly awoke. Her head rested on something hard. She squeezed it. It was wet because she realized she had drooled all over it. Resisting the urge to sit up, she stretched. It was so snug and warm. Something soft and heavy covered her. For the first time in months she felt safe. “I think our sleeping beauty is finally waking up.” A hand stroked her hair. “Good morning, Eleanor. Did you sleep well?” “Mmmmm,” she said. She didn’t feel like getting up yet. Maybe they would let her sleep a while longer. As she opened her eyes a little, she saw a man’s lap. Eleanor bolted upright and then shielded her eyes from the bright sunlight pouring in the windows. “How long have I been asleep?” she asked. “Almost twelve hours,” Damien said. He smiled at her. “You slept through South Dakota. You missed Mount Rushmore, although to be truthful, so did we. We passed by it at three in the morning. The lights were on, but it is not the same, is it? I hate to miss something like that. I always say, when you are passing by one of the wonders of the world, you should at least slow down and take a look. Do you not agree?” “Damien, what are you talking about?” Eleanor asked. “You are not yet all with us. After such a deep sleep, you need time to wake up. Take all the time you require. I would like to draw your attention to those beautiful mountains over there. Are they not wondrous?” Eleanor turned to Jacob. “Is he always this cheerful in the morning?” Jacob looked at her in the rearview mirror. “I’m afraid so. It takes some getting used to. How do you feel?” “I feel groggy, but otherwise, great. I slept almost twelve hours and I don’t remember having a single dream. Thank you, Damien. You have no idea what a relief that is. Could you do that for me every night?” “Yes, but I do not think it is wise. Constantine will sense me sooner or later and we need to keep the link between you strong. It will be much easier to find him.” Eleanor sighed. “Well, thanks for last night anyway.” She looked at the landscape and something occurred to her. “It’s daytime,” she said, alarmed. “You see,” Damien said, smiling at her again. “You are waking up. When the sun is up, it is daytime. When the sun is down, it is nighttime. Would you like to go over the four seasons now?” “But I thought—the sun—aren’t you, you know, sensitive to it?” “You have been watching too many movies. Do you want to inspect my teeth now, or will you sneak up behind me with a cross and holy water? I left my cape in the other 103

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vehicle, but if you like, I will change into a bat and tangle myself in your hair.” She thought about the cross hiding in her purse for just that purpose. It seemed silly all of a sudden and she decided to drop it, for now. “That’s what you get for letting me ponder for three months. What are my chances of a shower and some breakfast?” “The town of Buffalo, Wyoming is just up ahead,” Jacob said. “I can pull in there and look for a motel. We need fuel again, anyway.” As they pulled into Buffalo, Eleanor spotted the Happy Hen Inn. “There,” she said, pointing to it. “It has to be there.” It’s a sign, she thought. The sign may have said Inn, but it looked like a motel to Eleanor. Jacob got them a room and dropped off Damien and Eleanor. He went in search of food and fuel. Eleanor grabbed her suitcase and hurried into the bathroom. The shower felt wonderful. It was amazing what a good night’s sleep and clean hair could do for a person. By the time she had dressed and finished her hair and makeup, Jacob was back with breakfast, which was a good thing because she was starving. They sat at the small table on mismatched chairs. Eleanor and Jacob had bacon, eggs and toast and Damien had fruit. The difference in their breakfasts reminded Eleanor that Damien had some questions to answer. “So, you’re a vegetarian.” “Yes,” Damien said, sectioning his orange. “I eat nothing with a face, or that has the potential to have a face.” “Why? On principle, or because you can’t digest it?” “The thought of eating meat is unpalatable to me. I have no idea if I can digest it or not. I have never tried.” “Do you think less of me because I do?” Damien’s eyebrows shot up. “Why, no, Eleanor, I think very highly of you. I think you are mistaken, or have been misled into believing you need to eat animals to live.” He pointed his orange wedge at her bacon. “This was once alive. It had a mother and a father. It was not allowed its natural span on this earth. Its life was cut short so humans could eat ham, pork chops and bacon. Who knows what would have happened to it if allowed its natural time.” “What do you mean? Do you think this pig I’m eating would have done something noble?” Eleanor inquired. “Noble for a pig, maybe. My point is, it was interrupted in its journey, as the human race has done with all domesticated animals. They are not being given the chance to evolve naturally. By interrupting the evolution of animals, humans are upsetting the balance of the planet. Who knows where it will end? What would have happened to the human race if at the beginning of their evolution from ape to man, they had been penned up, force-fed and artificially inseminated to breed big and stupid? We would not be sitting here debating the eating of animals, now would we?” Eleanor was speechless. He had a point. She turned to Jacob. “What do you think of

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all this?” Jacob shrugged his broad shoulders. “I like bacon.” Eleanor choked on her scrambled eggs. She looked back to Damien, “And that’s okay with you? Jacob, eating meat.” Damien laughed softly. “Eleanor, these are not the questions I thought you would ask.” “I’m trying to work into it gradually. I know how hard this is for you.” “Well, we have time now. Jacob must rest before we can continue. Why not ‘go for the gusto’?” Eleanor looked at him skeptically. “All right. What are you, Damien?” “Finally, we have reached this point, you and I. At long last your voracious curiosity will be satisfied.” He sat back in his chair and crossed his legs. Eleanor leaned forward in anticipation. “We are an old race,” he began. “When humans were ending their evolution to modern man, we were watching. At first, we thought you were a new type of ape emerging, but we noticed over time something remarkable was happening. Your intelligence was evolving along with your bodies. A wondrous thing. Imagine how we felt when you ended up so closely resembling us. How would you feel if your dogs could suddenly talk to you? That is how some of us felt.” “How do you know all this?” “We have our histories, just as you do. Ours are much older. We watched as man first banded together in groups. We saw your first cities and civilizations rise. The Minoans, the Egyptians, the Greeks, the Romans, the Empires of the East, all rose and fell under our watchful eye. You fascinated us.” “Yes, but where did you come from? Where does your history start?” “We don’t know. Our earliest records are incomplete. They simply state we came into being. Who made us, and why, is a mystery we are still investigating. It is the same with your race, is it not?” “It depends on who you talk to. Did you ever live among us?” “No, we did not want to interact with humans. You were, and are, a very brutal race. We do not understand your need to kill each other. Also, up until a few hundred years ago, we could not blend in. We have always been tall. The shortest of us are still over six feet. Most humans were much shorter. We would have been giants to them.” “So, there is a whole race of you? Men, women and children?” “Yes.” “Where do you live?” “We like cold places. Our body temperatures are lower than yours. We live far to the north and south of human populations.” Jacob got up and went to the bed to lie down and try to get some sleep. “Wake me

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in four hours, no more,” he mumbled. Eleanor turned back to Damien. Lowering her voice, she said, “So, you watched us from the sidelines, living apart in the cold north. What has changed? You are living among us now, aren’t you?” Damien looked uncomfortable. “You are very perceptive, Eleanor. Yes, we had been content to leave the humans alone. At times some of us were tempted to interfere—for your own good, you understand—but wiser heads prevailed. It wasn’t until your second world war that we were moved to act. “When the Americans dropped their bombs on Japan, we were horrified. You had developed the capability to destroy this planet we share. We realized we had to go out among you. For the sake of our race, we had to leave our cold homes and infiltrate the human world. We could not allow you to destroy what we had spent millennia building.” Eleanor was ashamed. How does anyone justify nuclear bombs? She certainly couldn’t. “I would like to apologize for the human race, but some evils are too great to apologize for. Would it help if I pointed out along with the evil, there is also good among us?” Damien leaned forward and took her hand. “That is what we are counting on. If we can help humans through this difficult time in their history, who knows what the future will bring? If we were sure we would not be dissected and exploited, we could come out openly among you.” Eleanor was confused. “If you stayed away from us until the forties, how is it you know so much about our history?” Damien dropped her hand and sat back in his chair. “Once we were able to blend in, some of us volunteered to live among you. As early as the first century, Dyads were sent all over the world to infiltrate societies and report back to the Diarchy.” “Wait a minute, you lost me. What’s a Dyad?” “A Dyad is simply a group of two. We are, each of us, born into a Dyad. The other half of my Dyad is my brother, David. We were born of two women who were themselves a Dyad. Fathered by another Dyad of two brothers.” “I don’t understand. How can you be brothers if you had different parents? Damien smiled at her. “Our biology is not the same as yours. David and I were born at the exact same second. We are more than what you consider brothers. We are two parts of the same whole. He completes me, and I, him. We feel what the other feels. We can link telepathically.” “Get out! Are you serious? Could you link with him right now? Wherever his is?” “Yes, but over this distance, it would deplete our energy. We would need time to recover.” “Oh, yes, what about that? What did you use to help Alice? Something was going on I couldn’t see. And how does Jacob fit into all this?”

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“Each of us has the ability to tap into what we call the Balance.” Damien held up his hand to forestall what he knew was her next question. “The Balance is the essence or inner being of this world. At least, that is our belief. It exists on a different plane than we do. It is the life force of all things on the planet and maybe beyond. We can channel the Balance into a power force to use as we see fit.” “What can you do with it?” “We can heal injuries and illnesses. We can make things grow at an accelerated rate. Control temperature. Move objects with our minds alone. We can sustain life.” Eleanor was having trouble taking in everything he was saying. “Could you teach me to do it? Can humans use the Balance?” Damien sighed and shook his head. He looked at her, almost embarrassed. “Would you teach a creature with the capacity to destroy itself, and everything around it, how to harness and use such power?” Eleanor felt ashamed again. “No, I don’t suppose I would.” She looked over at the bed. “What about Jacob? It looked like he was involved in what you did with Alice.” “Jacob is my partner.” “Is he, you know, human?” she asked quietly. “As human as you are.” “Why do you have partners?” “When we went out in your world, we found it was possible to draw strength from humans. When a Dyad is apart from each other, it is much harder to reach the Balance. We are weaker apart and it is not always possible to stay together. David and I attract a great deal of attention when we are together. Even apart, it is hard for us to be inconspicuous.” He looked down at his hands and blushed. “Our height and other physical characteristics make us stand out.” “You mean you draw attention to yourselves because you’re all so tall and handsome?” “Yes, I am afraid so.” “I’ve never thought being unbelievably attractive could be a drawback.” “It is if you are trying to blend in. So, we had to separate, often for months at a time. As I said, we are weaker apart. We found that by taking a human partner, we could equalize our strength back almost to what it is when the Dyad is together.” “What happens to Jacob when you draw strength from him?” “Each of you has within you some of the Balance. It is your life force. I draw from Jacob’s life force the energy I need to do the task I have set myself. In your sister’s case, I tried at first without Jacob’s help to pull Alice away from Constantine. I found Con had grown too strong for me alone. When Jacob touched my hand, I drew on the Balance inside him to turn the tide of the battle being waged. I used some of Bobby’s Balance as well. Even with the three of us together, we barely brought Alice back.” “What has Constantine done to make himself so powerful?” 107

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Damien closed his eyes and shook his head. “He has turned his back on all our beliefs. He has broken with Christopher, the other half of his Dyad, something I did not think possible. He can no longer reach for the Balance in its pure form as we do, because without Christopher, it is impossible for him to do so. He is using humans instead. But he…he drains them without giving back what he has taken.” “What do you mean, giving back?” “When we draw strength from our partners, we always give back what we have taken. We bring them back into Balance. Constantine is keeping what he takes to grow his strength. The humans are left drained, hopeless and addicted to the pleasure of feeling the balance within them.” “Those people at the party. The old ones. That’s what happened to them, isn’t it?” “Yes, I am afraid so. We found thirteen of them at the estate after Constantine had left. We are in the process of healing them. Do you remember Thomas Kent, the man who ushered us in to see Con? ” “Yes.” “He was one of the thirteen.” “Was he still waiting to become one of Constantine’s first soldiers, or whatever?” “Yes, I am afraid he was quite disappointed when he learned the truth.” “What about Elsbeth Cummings and her underage sex offering, Tina? What happened to them?” Eleanor tried to keep the disdain she felt for the women out of her voice. “You did not care for the two of them?” Damien’s eyes twinkled. “Oh, they were great fun. If you like man-eaters, that is.” Damien threw his head back and laughed. “Eleanor, my dear, you are a breath of fresh air. How wonderful it must be to say whatever you think, whenever you want. I love Americans.” “But, Thomas and the others, they will all be all right? You can put them back the way they were?” Damien lost his smile and sighed. “We can get them back to some semblance of what they were, but they will be forever changed. We have done what we can to modify their minds and bodies, but they will long for Constantine the rest of their lives. They will be out of Balance, never to be what they could have been.” “Aren’t you afraid they’ll tell everyone what they know? How can you trust them?” Damien gave his shoulders an elegant shrug. “We do not need to trust them. Their memories have been modified.” “You can do that? Change a person’s memories?” “Yes.” Eleanor had a frightening thought. “Have you ever changed mine?” “No, I have never felt the need to. I trust you and your sister. Your word is your

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bond.” “Well, it’s nice to know you trust me, but how do I know you haven’t changed my memories. I mean, I wouldn’t know, would I?” “Because my word is my bond.” She examined his face for some trace of a lie. He was so earnest. Honesty seemed to flow off him. Was this another of his powers? The ability to make people trust him? She decided it didn’t matter. She trusted him and that was that. “Fair enough. But, if it makes any difference, I am formally asking you to stay out of my head. I want your word on it.” He smiled and nodded at her. “You have it.” On the bed, Jacob started to snore. Eleanor looked at him and smiled. “How long have you and Jacob been partners?” “A long time. Longer than any other partner I have had. It is a hard life, partnering with us. You must leave your family and friends behind.” “Do you mean you can never see your people again? That seems so harsh. Why does it have to be that way?” “I know you cannot comprehend leaving your family forever, but all families are not like yours. In Jacob’s case, he had no one left to leave. We have found a clean break is best. We never locate the human partner in the same part of the world as their family.” “Has any partner ever left you and gone back to his people? I mean, is it allowed?” Damien laughed. “Allowed? You make it sound as if the partner is forced into the relationship. No human partner has ever chosen to leave us. There are many benefits.” “What kind of benefits?” Damien looked down and shook his head. “Eleanor, it is hard for me to answer some of your questions. This is not just my story, it is Jacob’s as well. I am not sure he would like me to talk with you about this.” Eleanor looked at him coldly. “We made a deal.” “Exactly, we made a deal. You and I. Jacob had no say in the matter. If you want to know more about human partners, I suggest you ask him.” Eleanor snorted. “He won’t tell me anything. He never tells me anything.” “Just ask him, he may surprise you.” Eleanor looked over at Jacob, still snoring loudly. “Well, it sounds as if being able to control your snoring is not one of the benefits. It’s too bad, because that would be a big plus for most men, and the women who sleep next to them.” Eleanor and Damien laughed quietly together. Damien looked so young when he laughed, she thought. It made her think of her next question. “How old are you, Damien?” “That is one of the questions I thought you would ask. David and I were born in

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your year fourteen eighty-two. Ten years before Columbus sailed for the new world.” Eleanor gasped. She shook her head in disbelief. “Wait, wait, that would make you…” “Over five hundred now,” Damien said, smiling. “We were born to replace the third Stewart Dyad.” “My God,” Eleanor said in a rush. “What you must have seen. Were you one of the Dyads who volunteered to live among humans?” “Yes, David and I jumped at the chance. We were young and looking for adventure. We went to England in fifteen ten, the second year of Henry VIII’s reign. It was a marvelous time. The Wars of the Roses was long over. Henry and his queen, Catherine of Aragon, were young and in love. It was a season of hope. “David and I set up a printing shop. It was a way to learn about your culture as quickly as possible and I have always loved books. David’s partner acted as owner of the shop and we worked in the back.” Eleanor thought of so many questions about what it must have been like to live then, but something else popped into her head. “You said before that you and David were born to replace something. What did you mean?” “We were born to replace the third Stewart Dyad. David and I are the fourth Stewart Dyad. There can only be five hundred Dyads, or a total of one thousand of us. Any more and the Balance is upset.” “Just one thousand of you on the whole planet?” “Yes.” “You mean you all follow that rule? What if a couple wants to have a baby? Do they have to wait until—what—somebody dies?” “Our biology is not the same as yours. Our women become fertile only when a Dyad dies, and as soon as a Dyad becomes pregnant, the other women cannot conceive.” “Did you say when a Dyad dies? Does that mean what I think it does?” “Yes, Eleanor. If David dies, so do I, and vice versa. I told you we are two parts of the same whole. I would not want to live without David. I would not be wholly alive.” “But what happens?” Eleanor asked. “I mean, say one of you is shot through the heart—that would kill you, wouldn’t it?” Damien nodded. “What happens to the other one?” “The link with the brother would pull the other down into death with him. Their hearts would stop at the same moment. They would journey on together.” Eleanor’s heart sped up. She was afraid to ask her next question, unsure she wanted to know the answer. “Where do you go after you die? Do you know?” Damien gave her a compassionate smile. “Death is not the end, Eleanor. When we

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die, our life force, our knowledge, everything we are, continues on in the Balance. But just as the Balance is on a different plane from us, so are the Dyads that have lived before us.” “Yes, but how do you know?” “There are those among us who can use the Balance to speak with Dyads who have journeyed on. They are called the Chaldeans. Speaking with past Dyads is just one of the amazing things they can do.” Eleanor felt tears in her eyes. “So, you or someone you know, can speak with your dead?” “Yes,” Damien said gently. Unable to hold back the tears, she asked, “Can they talk to human dead? Do humans go to the Balance too?” “That is what we believe. The Chaldeans have had some success contacting human partners who have journeyed on. To my knowledge, they have never tried to contact a human who was not a partner.” “So, do you believe in God?” “We believe in the Balance. The Balance has nurtured us both physically and spiritually. We have built our civilization upon it. It is everything to us. And who knows, maybe Christ, Buddha and Mohammad all came out of the Balance to spread their word.” Eleanor felt wrung out, exhausted. She’d wanted so much for Damien to tell her there was a God and her parents were with Him or Her. Why couldn’t there ever be an answer she could accept? Why did so much depend on faith? She wanted to feel this Balance he kept talking about. “Damien, could you show me what the Balance is? I mean, is it possible for me to feel it the way you do?” “It takes much practice to reach and control the Balance, even for us. To my knowledge, no human has ever touched the Balance without one of us helping.” “Oh.” Disappointment flooded through her. “That’s too bad.” “Look at me Eleanor.” Damien reached over and took her hand. “If you like, I can show you a little of the Balance. It would be just a touch, you understand, but it would give you an idea of what it is like.” Be careful what you wish for, she thought. “Okay. What do I have to do?” “Just relax, and trust me.” He reached across the small table and took her other hand in his. “Look at me, Eleanor,” he said softly. Eleanor looked at him, hesitating. She felt like she was waiting for a ride at an amusement park to start, frightened and excited at the same time. “Look into my eyes, Eleanor,” Damien said. Realizing she had been avoiding it, she took a deep breath and looked deeply into his eyes. She felt the sensation she had when Constantine had looked at her. The

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telephoto lens clicked and there was only Damien. He did not overwhelm her as Constantine had. Damien gently pushed into her mind. She could see him sitting in front of her, but she could also feel him all around her. It wasn’t sexual, but a mutual joining of their minds. It wasn’t invasive. Damien hovered around her as if he were giving her a big cerebral hug. A tingling started in her fingers. It was that same under-the-skin, goose-bump feeling she had felt around Damien before. This time the sensation spread quickly. Soon it had gone from her arms, to her chest and down her torso. It went up into her head and down her legs to stop at her toes. When her entire body was enveloped, the feeling changed from goose bumps to something entirely different. Something moved though her. It wasn’t like an electrical current, because that would hurt. It was as if every molecule in her body was responding to whatever force this was. Bubbling gently. Damien gripped her hands tighter and Eleanor felt the current moving through her body respond to his touch. The current moved to the center of her body, grouping itself together. And then, as if pulled back with a sling shot, it hurled itself out of her body into Damien’s. Damien raised his right hand and Eleanor watched in awe as everything on the table started to float above it. Oranges and apples danced with each other. Her uneaten bacon floated by her face. A napkin folded itself into the shape of a swan and the dish really did run away with the spoon. “This is absolutely amazing,” Eleanor said, taking a bite of the bacon floating by. Damien lowered his hand and everything settled back down on the table. He looked at her and smiled. Eleanor smiled back at him. “That was just a touch?” Damien laughed. “Yes, Eleanor, that was just a small use of the Balance. How do you feel?” “I feel wonderful. Like I could do anything. Is this what it’s always like?” “It can be much more intense,” Damien said. “I only raised a very small portion of the Balance inside you. If I were to take too much, you would feel drained and very fatigued unless I put back what I had taken.” Eleanor looked at him warily. “So do you have to put something back into me now?” “No. With such a small draw, your natural resilience will compensate almost at once. Do you notice anything else?” “What do you mean?” she asked. “Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose.” A little uneasy, Eleanor did as he directed. Smells assaulted her, so many and so fast that she stopped inhaling abruptly. “Whoa, what was that?” She pinched her nose shut and breathed through her mouth.

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“Another side effect of raising the Balance in humans. Your senses heighten. For the next few minutes you will be able to see farther, taste each individual spice used in a dish, hear conservations from a block away and, as you noted, smell everything around you.” “Right now I’m not sure that’s such a good thing.” She took an experimental sniff. “Everything really smells.” Damien chuckled. “The partners say the same thing at first. Close your eyes and try again. This time focus on just what is on the table in front of you.” Eleanor obeyed. The smells overpowered her again and she shook her head. “No, don’t like it,” she said. “Concentrate,” Damien urged. “Rein it in. Just the table.” With her eyes still closed, she put her hands on the ends of the table to get a sense of space. Then she focused her mind on that space and inhaled. At first it was the same jumble of smells as before but soon one smell stood out from the rest, the smoky bacon. Widening her focus she identified scrambled eggs, cooked in margarine, not butter with salt and pepper. The cook was a purist, kept his scrambled eggs simple. She giggled. “This is really something.” With her next sniff she found two apples. One of them had a large rotten area on the side facing her. “This would come in handy at the grocery store.” She opened her eyes and stared at the food in front of her with a kind of wonder. “Is this what you smell all the time?” she asked. “No. Our senses are slightly more developed than humans but not much. We need to invoke the power of the Balance to get to your heightened state.” “How long will this last?” she asked. He shrugged. “As I said, this was just a touch. The effects will only last a few minutes. Twenty to thirty at the most.” Energy coursed through her, making her feel restless. “Can we get out of this room for a while? Jacob still has to sleep, but can we go for a walk or something?” If she didn’t move soon her head was going to spin off. Damien looked at her indulgently. “It is empowering, is it not? Yes, some fresh air will do us good, I think.” They got up and bundled into their coats. Damien took one of the two room keys and made sure Jacob was locked in. It was a bright January morning. Cold, but just sunny enough so you didn’t mind too much. Eleanor took a look around and noted her improved eyesight. If she squinted she could make out the license plate numbers on the cars rushing by on the freeway more than a block away. She started walking toward a park she’d noticed when they’d arrived. Her walk was different she realized. It had an energetic bounce in her stride that had never been there before. It was fun. “I feel like I drank a ton of coffee, except 113

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I’m not jittery. This is wonderful. I could get used to this.” “No, Eleanor,” Damien said. “That is part of the human problem with the Balance. Unless properly controlled and monitored, humans can become addicted to what you are feeling.” They crossed the street and entered the park. Eleanor chose a path leading deeper in, away from the street. “Oh, I understand now,” Eleanor said. “That’s what was going on at the party. Constantine was making those people feel like this, wasn’t he?” “He was making them feel how he wanted them to feel. With some, he channeled into their libidos, with others, their need for power. He would study them to decide how best to make them feel and then bind them to him through addiction.” Eleanor was horrified. “But that’s-that’s…” Damien nodded. “Despicable, I know. It is against all of our laws. We do not misuse the Balance in that way.” “Well, I’m glad you’re not a vampire. I couldn’t get by the whole blood thing. Gross!” “I agree,” Damien said. “But you have no idea the number of times we have been mistaken for vampire. Bram Stoker’s book is one of the few I wish had never been published. It has caused us much trouble.” They walked by a deserted playground. Eleanor laughed and went to the oldfashioned, ladder-shaped jungle gym. She jumped up with surprising ease and grabbed the first rung. With a speed and grace that amazed her, she swung from rung to rung, until she flung herself off the last to land perfectly on her feet in the snowpack. “I have never been able to do that before. I just don’t have the upper body strength. This is—” A white van plowed through the snow toward them. That’s odd, Eleanor thought. There was no road here. They were driving straight through the park. It must be teenagers, skipping school. The van stopped a few feet in front of them. Damien moved in front of Eleanor. “Stay behind me,” he said quietly. All four van doors opened simultaneously and men with guns drawn poured out. Damien whirled and grabbed Eleanor by the shoulders. “Run,” he said and pushed her away from the men.

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Chapter Sixteen Eleanor started running. If she hadn’t had the extra energy, she never would’ve moved fast enough to get over the hill before they had a chance to shoot. Afraid to look back, she was down the hill and running up the next before any plan had reached her mind. Spinning around, she turned toward a line of trees on her right. With a speed that amazed her, she reached them and went to ground underneath the branches. Inching forward on her elbows, she maneuvered so she could peek out through the leaves to see if anyone had followed them. What she saw filled her with dread. Damien wasn’t with her. She’d assumed he was right behind her but she was wrong. He’d stayed at the playground. No wonder they hadn’t followed her. She wasn’t important, it was Damien they wanted. She focused her heightened senses on the playground, trying to pick up any sound. Damien had his back against a large cement tube with the men forming a semicircle around him, guns pointing at him. One man lay in the snow. Eleanor had no doubt Damien had put him there. Damien stood, a feral look on his face, his arms outstretched, as if he were reaching for something. He snarled at the men. “Don’t let him touch you,” shouted the biggest of the men. “Use the tranquillizer guns only.” Eleanor noticed red tipped darts sticking out of Damien. One on each leg, one in his chest and one sticking out of his neck. She couldn’t think what to do. Should she run and get Jacob? Did Jacob have a gun with him? Should she scream for help? As she was thinking, two more red darts stuck to Damien and his legs started to wobble. If she was going to do something, it better be now. Just as she was moving out of the trees, she saw the men look nervously at each other. Their guns started to waver. “Bernie,” a man in a blue hat said. “What the hell is this?” “Don’t panic,” the first man said. “Concentrate and keep sticking him with the darts. He has to fall soon.” Suddenly, Damien had one of the men in his arms. The man’s gun hand was behind his back. Damien’s hand covered the struggling man’s face. “What the fuck?” the blue-hatted man said. “I didn’t see him move. Did anyone see him move?” The man in Damien’s arms started screaming. Eleanor blinked in disbelief as the darts in Damien’s body started launching themselves at the men. Howls broke out as 115

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the darts struck home. As one, the men backed away from Damien. “Hold,” shouted the man Eleanor had figured out must be Bernie, the leader. “Lower your guns,” Damien said in a voice Eleanor didn’t recognize. He was slurring his words. The drugs from all those darts must be affecting him. The man in Damien’s arms stopped screaming. He hung limply, probably unconscious. Eleanor couldn’t tell from this distance. “Lower your guns,” Damien said again, this time sounding more like himself. “This is the last time I will make the request.” Bernie moved between his men and Damien. “Hank,” he yelled. “Bring him out.” Two more men came out of the van. One held the other in a chokehold, a gun against the captive man’s temple. It took Eleanor a moment to recognize the captive. It was Simon, Constantine’s partner. He looked terrible. One of his eyes was swollen shut, his lips were cracked and bleeding, and he held his right arm close against his side, as if his ribs were bruised or broken. “Damien,” he said in a choked voice. “God no, not you.” He struggled against the man holding him, heedless of the gun against his head. One of the men in the semicircle broke off and moved to Simon and his captor. He punched Simon hard in the side he favored. Simon groaned and fell to his knees. “All right, Stewart,” Bernie said, facing Damien. “You have a decision to make. You can let go of my man there and come along with us nice and peaceful-like, or you can watch your friend here die. We’ll just start with him, though. Next, we’ll catch that little girl you were with when we drove up. I don’t have to tell you what we’ll do to her, do I? And what about your partner sleeping at the motel? One word from me and he never wakes up.” He held up a Walkie Talkie. Simon wearily raised his head. “No, Damien, don’t let yourself be taken. They are trying to—” The man next to him hit Simon over the head with his gun. Simon fell to the ground and was still. Eleanor’s blood boiled as the man pointed his gun at Simon’s head, looked up at the others and smiled. “Well, Stewart,” Bernie said. “What’s it going to be? You coming with us or do we start shooting?” It was getting harder and harder for Eleanor to hear their voices. Shit, shit, shit. The power is going away. Damien looked at each of the men, as if sizing them up. He looked at Simon lying in the snow. For just a moment, his gaze flicked to where Eleanor hid in the trees. “Very well.” Damien dropped the man. “I will come with you.” “Wise choice,” Bernie said. “Let’s lock him up.”

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Another white van appeared and pulled up behind its twin. Bernie went to it and opened the back door. “Get in, and remember, if you try any of your tricks, your friend here is dead. You got that, Stewart?” “I understand,” Damien said, getting into the van. Two men got in with him while the others loaded Simon into the first van and piled in. Bernie turned and looked at the stand of trees that hid Eleanor. “Catch you later, little girl,” he yelled and hopped into the first van. Once Ernie closed his door both vans drove off, leaving Eleanor in a now-deserted playground. Eleanor lay frozen to the spot. What just happened? Damien was gone, in big trouble, and she’d just let it happen. She should have done something. Screamed for help, at least. Now it was too late. What about Jacob? Bernie had threatened him. What if they’d hurt Jacob? She had to get to him, warn him. She could at least do that much. Eleanor sprang up and ran as fast as she could to the Happy Hen Inn. She looked for the white vans as she ran, but saw no sign of them. When she reached it, the inn looked normal, nothing out of place, no gunmen waiting outside their room. Eleanor tried the door. It was locked and Damien had the key. She pounded on the door. “Jacob, Jacob, wake up. Jacob, please, open the door, Jacob,” she screamed. She could hear the hysteria in her voice. It was as if she were watching and evaluating herself from afar. Hysterical, girlie-woman, she thought. No help to anyone. The door to the room flew open. Jacob stood there, a grim look on his face. “What’s happened?” Pushing back panic, she relayed as best she could what had happened. In one swift movement, Jacob grabbed her hand, pulled her into the room and slammed and bolted the door. He went to his duffel bag, rummaged through it and pulled out a pistol. All business now, he checked the load and tucked it into the waistband of his jeans. “Did you say a white van?” he asked. “Yes, two white vans. One took Damien, the other has Simon. What are we going to do, Jacob?” He shot her a murderous look. “We’re going to get them back. Hurry and pack up. I have to make some calls and grab some coffee.” He took out his cell phone and went outside. Eleanor quickly gathered her things. She also packed the few belongings Damien and Jacob had brought into the room. Hooking all three bags over her shoulders, she staggered outside. Jacob pulled the Hummer around to the door. She threw the bags in the backseat, jumped into the front and as soon as her door was closed, Jacob floored the gas pedal. In a matter of seconds, they were back on the interstate, speeding west.

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Chapter Seventeen Jacob had been on the phone for almost an hour. Eleanor was frustrated from listening to one-sided conversations. From what she could decipher, everyone back at the estate in Minnesota was packing up to head west. Through his psychic link with Damien, his brother David was guiding Jacob in the pursuit of the white vans. Every so often, Jacob would shoot a question at her. How many men were there? How bad did Simon look? Are you sure you never saw those men before today? Did Simon say anything about Constantine? Jacob thrust the phone at Eleanor. “David wants to talk to you.” Eleanor took the small phone and put it to her ear. It was hot from prolonged use. “Hello?” she said hesitantly. “Hello, Eleanor, this is David Stewart, Damien’s brother. I believe he mentioned me.” Eleanor shivered. He sounded exactly like Damien. Not similar, like other brothers and sisters sounded, but exactly alike. It was spooky. “Yes,” she finally managed. “He told to me about you.” “I am sorry we have to meet under such trying circumstances. I have heard so much about you and have been looking forward to making your acquaintance. Now, however, I must push aside the niceties and presume a familiarity I have not earned.” “You’re Damien’s twin all right.” Eleanor smiled. “What can I do for you, David?” “Please tell Jacob to pull the automobile over to the side of the road.” Eleanor looked at Jacob. “He wants you to pull over.” Jacob nodded and started to slow the Hummer down. “Okay,” Eleanor said into the phone. “Jacob is pulling over. What now?” The David-Damien voice came back through the phone. “I want you to concentrate. Close your eyes and look inward. We have to push your link with Constantine. We have run out of time and must find his location.” As the Hummer came to a stop, Eleanor took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “Am I looking for anything in particular, or just inward, in general?” she asked. David chuckled through the phone. “Damien was correct, you are fun.” His voice turned serious. “Clear your mind and concentrate on Constantine. I understand you met him.” “Oh yeah, I met him all right.” She opened her eyes and found Jacob’s face inches from hers. “Close your eyes, Eleanor,” David said. 118

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She quickly closed her eyes. How did David know her eyes were open? Goose bumps broke out on her arms. David’s voice came over the phone, soothing, lulling her to a state of calm. “Jacob is going to touch you. This will help me link to you.” When Jacob touched her hand it tingled. “Think of Constantine, Eleanor. What does he look like? Think of the shape of his face, the color of his eyes. What did he say to you when you met? How does he treat you in your dreams? What does he smell like? Concentrate.” A few moments went by. Eleanor pushed everything but Constantine out of her mind. She thought of how tall he was, what a powerful voice he had, and she remembered his magnetism. In her dreams, he had kissed her countless times as he tried to seduce her. Pleasure and pain. That’s what Constantine was all about. The world around her shifted and suddenly, she was back in the bedroom of her dream. Constantine sat on the bed, holding his arms out to her. From somewhere far off, Eleanor heard David’s voice. “Very good, Eleanor, you have done it. Go to him. Let him take you into his arms.” Take me into his arms, she thought. Is he nuts? How had she gotten here? Was she still in the car? Was this a dream? It couldn’t be, she was awake—wasn’t she? Constantine stared at her. In the past she had always fought the urge to go to him. Shouldn’t she fight it now? David’s voice came again. ”Go to him, Eleanor. Now. Do not be afraid, I am there with you.” As Eleanor started toward Constantine, every instinct told her to turn around and run, but she managed to fight her way to the bed. Constantine’s arms went around her and he pulled her down on the bed with him. His eyes bored into hers and she saw triumph, lust and something else she thought might be regret. He lowered his head and put his cold lips against hers. “Kiss her, Jacob,” the voice in her ear said. Eleanor felt another pair of arms going around her and she smelled Jacob. She had the oddest sensation of being kissed by cold and warm lips at the same time and then her world blew apart. A battle was being fought and she was the battlefield. A power flowed into her and moved quickly through her body. It gathered itself up in her midsection and then shot out through her mouth. In the dream world, Constantine drew back from her, his face a mask of fury. He looked deeply into to her eyes, searching for something. Snarling, he grabbed her in a tighter embrace and kissed her, again and again, bruising her lips with his rough treatment. When the power grew this time, it felt different, stronger. Her whole body tingled and throbbed. It was just this side of painful. The power grew and grew until she was sure her head was going to blow off. She felt it shoot out her lips and into Jacob.

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She heard Jacob gasp in pain as he pulled away from her. “Almost there,” David’s voice from the phone said. “Again, Jacob.” Eleanor felt Jacob’s lips on hers again. She wanted to tell him to stop, but with two men kissing her simultaneously, that sure wasn’t going to happen. The power grew inside her again. This time she noticed a difference between the power built from David and Jacob, and the power built by Constantine. David and Jacob’s was easier on her body. It built more smoothly and flowed out in a smaller beam than Constantine’s. They had a light hand, Eleanor thought, as opposed to Constantine’s hammer-like force. This time when the power shot out of her Constantine was thrown back against the headboard from the force of the blast. He lay there for a moment, catching his breath. His face turned to Eleanor and he spoke for the first time. “Hello, David. It took you longer to find me than I thought it would. What did you think of the gift I left for you? Are you still healing them?” His grip tightened on Eleanor’s arms, bruising her. “I have him, you know,” he said with quiet menace. “If you and Damien do not join me, you both will die. I am through with games and politics. I have found our future.” Constantine sat up, pulled her to him and looked deeply into her eyes. “Listen to me, David. The Diarchy is dead. It has been for centuries, but the old ones refuse to give up their hold on us. They keep us bound with traditions and laws that do not apply in this modern age. If we keep blindly following the old ways, we will all fade and die. What I am doing will set us free. Why am I the only one who sees this?” In the dream, Constantine shook Eleanor. “I want you to join me in my quest. You have no choice. One word from me and you both are dead. Damien will drag you down into death with him.” He started to lower his head for another kiss. Eleanor had had enough. She felt like a tennis ball being batted back and forth between two pros. Great fun for the pros, but not so good for the ball. It was time for her to fight back. Pushing his head away, she twisted in his arms, determined not to let him kiss her again. The power would surely kill her this time. Fighting for her life, she kicked and scratched at him, all the while looking for a way out of the dream and back to reality. “Jacob,” she cried in desperation. “Please, help me.” Jacob’s voice came from a distance. It sounded like an old-fashioned megaphone. “Enough, David, let her go,” he said. She was getting tired. Constantine was so strong, she was no match for him. Any moment, his lips would close over hers and she would be lost. In desperation, she put both hands over her mouth and buried her head against his chest. Underneath her hands, she felt warm lips against hers. This time there was no power attached to them. The lips left hers and trailed a path to her ear. “Come back to me, Eleanor,” Jacob said. “Listen to my voice. Feel my arms around

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you, not his.” Eleanor felt warm hands travel up and down her arms. The warm kisses and hands started to feel more real than Constantine’s cold hands, still struggling with her. “Trust me, Ellie,” Jacob whispered against her ear. Eleanor could smell Jacob now. That wonderful pine, leather and man smell. She felt his lips against her eyes. “Open your eyes, baby,” Jacob said in a husky voice. He kissed one eye and then the other. The dream started to fade. Eleanor had one last look at Constantine. His face full of hate and fury. He shouted something but Eleanor couldn’t hear him. She opened her eyes and found herself back in the Hummer. Jacob was pulling away from her face where just a moment ago, he’d been kissing her eyes. They were still warm from his touch. She saw heat in his eyes, along with worry and anger. She brought her hand up and cupped his cheek. “Thank you,” she said. Jacob covered her hand with his. He kissed her palm all the while holding her eyes with his. “Forgive me,” he said, moving her hand back and forth over his cheek. “I had no idea David would use you like this. I wouldn’t have allowed it.” Her hand felt wonderful against his cheek. His beard stubble felt rough and soft at the same time. How is that possible, she wondered? She took a deep breath. Something was wrong. “Jacob, I don’t feel well,” she said as she fought the urge to throw up. “What’s happened? What did they do to me? My whole body is aching and I’m so tired all of a sudden.” A horrific thought flashed through her mind. What if they turned her into one of the old people? Her hands flew to her face but her skin and neck felt normal, thank God. She heard David’s voice coming from her lap. During the battle, she had dropped the phone. “Jacob, pick up the phone,” David said. Jacob sighed and reached for the phone and put it to his ear. “I’m here,” he said. He listened for a minute, watching Eleanor. He looked concerned and worried. “Yes, I understand,” he said finally. “But first we must give Eleanor back what we have taken. She has the drain sickness.” Eleanor was alarmed. The drain sickness. That didn’t sound good. Is it something you can get over, or what? She turned to ask Jacob, but stopped when he started talking into the phone again. He wasn’t looking at her anymore. Why was he not looking at her? Raising her hands to her face, she checked again for wrinkles. “I don’t care,” Jacob said. “You can replenish me when I see you. Or we can stop at a safe house on the way.” He stopped again to listen. ‘”No, David,” he said sharply. “You don’t understand. I will not go forward until we give Eleanor’s Balance back to her.” The drain sickness or whatever they called it, intensified. It felt like a bad case of the 121

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flu with a hangover on top. She was so dehydrated. If they didn’t help soon, she was going to pass out. “Yes, of course I’m ready,” Jacob said. He turned to her. “Try to relax. David and I are going to give back what was taken from you. You will feel fine after, I promise.” Jacob looked away from her. He took a couple of deep breaths and his eyes glazed over. She noticed he was rubbing a coin between his fingers. He moaned softly. Eleanor reached for him to see what was wrong. He pulled his hand away from her. “Not yet,” he said in a strangled voice. Drawing her head back, she continued to watch him. He was breathing hard, each breath deeper than the one before. When he opened his eyes and looked at her, Eleanor gasped, alarmed. Those beautiful gray eyes had taken on the look of Damien’s and Constantine’s. There was very little white and something blazed out of them at her. As Jacob’s arms went around her she tensed and tried to pull away from him. He scared her, he didn’t look like Jacob anymore. He lowered his head to hers. “Please, Eleanor, let me. Trust me.” His lips brushed hers. It wasn’t what she was expecting. From the look in his eyes, she thought he was going to crush her lips, but instead he was gentle. He continued brushing his lips back and forth over hers, coaxing her into relaxing. Eleanor sighed and started kissing him back. This was Jacob, she thought, not some monster. Jacob would never hurt her. He deepened the kiss, running his tongue over her parched lips. “Open for me, Eleanor,” he whispered against her mouth. In spite of how sick she felt, Eleanor melted at his words. She parted her lips slightly and felt Jacob’s tongue slide between them. He tasted like coffee and his tongue felt like velvet against hers. Wet velvet. She sucked his tongue into her mouth, luxuriating in the hot, moist feel of it inside her parched mouth. She heard Jacob moan softly and his arms tightened around her, pulling her even closer. A warm tingling started in her mouth. She could feel the power flowing from Jacob’s mouth into hers. It wasn’t like before. This was a gentle push, spreading from her mouth to her throat and down into her chest. Everywhere it touched, Eleanor could feel it re-hydrating her moisture-starved cells. It was as if a warm, wet balm was spreading through her bloodstream, leaving behind a healing calm. It spread down her arms and legs until her entire body tingled with the healing sensation. For a moment, Eleanor felt as if she was floating above her body. She stayed there for a few euphoric seconds and then settled back down into herself. The power slipped away from her taking the last feelings of nausea and thirst with it. She realized Jacob was still kissing her. A different kind of tingling started deep inside her. Now that she wasn’t feeling ill, her whole body jumped at the wonder of being in Jacob’s arms again. Jacob’s lips left her mouth and started trailing kisses all over her face and neck. His

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hand stroked her hair as he nuzzled her neck. His other hand moved from her waist to cup her breast. Eleanor’s head fell back and she moaned softly. Jacob kissed his way back to her mouth. Their tongues danced. He moved his hand to her other breast cupping and releasing it, over and over again, each time a little harder than the last. Eleanor was lost again. Lost in Jacob. They both heard David’s voice. “Jacob, Jacob,” he yelled through the phone. It was back in Eleanor’s lap. This time Jacob must have dropped it. Jacob drew back from Eleanor, swearing softly. He picked up the phone and shouted, “What?” He listened for a while, his other hand rubbing his face. He turned to Eleanor. “He wants to talk to both of us.” Jacob moved the phone so they could both listen. “Eleanor, can you hear me?” David said, his voice sounding tired. “Yes, I can hear you,” she said. “I am sorry I was forced to put you through that. I would not have done so unless it was absolutely necessary.” Eleanor shrugged. “Yeah, sure.” “I don’t blame you for being angry. Your link to Constantine had to be pushed. I have learned a great deal he did not want us to know.” “What?” Jacob asked. “I know his location. I know where they are taking Damien and Simon. There are many foul people around him. It is unclear if Con is completely free to come and go. I sensed uncertainty behind his threats and bravado. Someone was listening to him.” “How do you want me to proceed?” Jacob asked. “Keep to the plan we have laid out. Head west to the town of Seaside, on the coast of Oregon. Do not attempt anything on your own. We are coming.” “You should leave Mike behind. This is no place for him,” Jacob said. “Believe me, we did try. He threatened to take an ad out in the newspaper, outing the Diarchy. Something about ‘coming out of the closet’, I think was how he put it.” Eleanor and Jacob looked at each other and smiled. “I think you should stay away from our safe houses,” David continued. “Constantine knows of them, so they are not safe. I can feel how tired you are, Jacob. Stop and rest when you need to. Keep your linking coin on your person at all times. It takes much less energy to find you when you have your coin.” “How is your link with Damien holding up?” Jacob asked. “Very well, considering the distance and energy needed. I am drawing heavily from those around me and sending what I can to him. Damien is feigning drug-induced sleep so his captors underestimate him.” “You’re sure he’s all right? I can’t feel him when I reach,” Jacob said. “I assure you, other than being extremely angry, he is fine. He has shut down his

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link to you for now because he is anticipating Constantine using it to track or hurt you through him.” Eleanor felt Jacob’s body stiffen. “Tell him to re-establish the link, David. How can I help him if I can’t feel him?” “Why, Jacob,” David said sarcastically. “Are you suggesting I cannot take care of the other half of my Dyad? We did manage somehow before you came along, you know.” “Damn it, David, that’s not what I meant and you know it. Just tell him to reestablish,” Jacob shouted. “No, I will not,” David said, all trace of sarcasm gone. “We will not put you at risk. You are without your partner or any other help. You must wait for us to move. No matter what happens, you must wait for us.” Jacob shook his head. “But you’re almost a day behind. Anything could happen in a day.” “Con will not harm Damien until he has us both. I am certain of that.” “I hope to God you’re right,” Jacob said. There was a pause on the line. “One more thing,” David said. “Eleanor, are you still there?” “Yes,” she said. “I am afraid you are still in danger. Constantine wants you very badly. I’m not sure why, but he will not stop until you are his.” “That settles it, then,” Jacob said. “She’s getting on a bus back to Minneapolis.” “No,” Eleanor and David said at the same time. “She is much safer with you, Jacob. There is a bond growing between the two of you that should counteract Constantine’s link with Eleanor. I would tell you to nurture that bond, but it seems to be happening on its own.” Eleanor felt her face color and looked away from Jacob. “I still say she should go back,” Jacob muttered. “She would only follow you, would you not, Eleanor?” Her chin went up. “Yes.” “So, you see you are stuck with each other, my friends. I have a feeling it will not be unpleasant for either of you. I must say goodbye now. I am very tired and Aiden is telling me I must rest. One of us will check with you in a few hours. Safe travels to you both.” “Safe travels,” Eleanor and Jacob said. After Jacob ended the connection with David, a frosty silence settled between them. Jacob moved back behind the wheel. They both stared out the front window. Eleanor was angry and she knew Jacob knew it. “Look, Eleanor—” 124

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She cut him off. “Why are you always trying to get rid of me?” she said in a deadly voice. “Is that really what you think I’m trying to do? Get rid of you?” “That’s what it looks like from where I’m sitting. I don’t see or hear from you in three months, and the first thing I hear you say is how you have to get out of my house before I get home. Then you can’t wait to put me on a bus headed away from you. So, yes, Jacob, that’s what I really think you’re trying to do.” “Damn it, Eleanor. You were the one who walked away, remember? You didn’t want me.” Eleanor rounded on him. “I walked away from a man who didn’t think enough of me to offer more than a one-night stand. You stayed away.” “You don’t understand. You have no idea what my life is like. What your life would be like with me.” “You’re absolutely right, Jacob. I have no idea, and why is that? Because you won’t tell me, that’s why. I don’t get the chance to make a choice. You’ve made it for both of us.” “Eleanor, it’s not like that,” he said haltingly. “Then what is it like?” Eleanor shot back at him. She waited for his answer. When none came, she threw up her hands in defeat. “What, cat got your tongue? Oh, wait, don’t tell me. It’s just one more thing I can’t know, or wouldn’t understand, right?” “Listen, Eleanor—“ She could tell he was getting angry now, but she didn’t care. “Just start the car and drive. I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” “Fine,” he snapped, starting the engine. He shoved the Hummer into gear and squealed back onto the freeway.

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Chapter Eighteen For over seventeen hours, Jacob drove both the Hummer and himself toward the coast of Oregon, only stopping for food and fuel. Eleanor learned early on to use the bathroom at each stop. She’d be damned if she slowed him down or asked for any special favors. They rarely spoke, only about where to stop and what towns were coming up. Nothing was said about what either of them was feeling. She listened to another heated conversation between Jacob and David about the importance of Jacob’s waiting for them to do anything. Jacob wanted to start scouting the area and planning their attack, but David finally convinced him he would do more harm than good if he was spotted. They reached the town of Seaside at five a.m. the day after Damien was taken. Jacob checked them into a small resort on the ocean that David had reserved. They had a one room cottage all to themselves, allowing them to keep a low profile until the group from Minnesota arrived. When he opened the door, Jacob staggered to the bed, mumbled something about not using the phone and collapsed. He was asleep before his head hit the pillow. Eleanor stood at the door, her suitcase in her hand, looking at their refuge. Most of it was taken up by the bed and most of the bed was now taken up by Jacob. The cottage had a small kitchen with a table, two chairs and a closet-sized bathroom. Where am I supposed to sleep? she thought. The floor? Why should I have to sleep on the floor when that big oaf gets the bed? Who cares if he’s had a lot less sleep than me? Who cares if his partner and friend had been kidnapped? Who cares if he probably saved her from Constantine in the dream? She was tired, damn it! Well, she would use up all the hot water taking a shower. The shower was so small, she laughed at the thought of Jacob using it. He’d have to do the limbo just to get wet. Served him right, the big jerk. Despite its small size, the shower felt wonderful. She’d built up quite a few layers of travel grime on their mad dash west. Because she was still angry, she stayed in the shower much longer than she needed to, waiting for the hot water to run out, but it never did. Finally, she gave up and got out. After she’d dried off, she put on her most comfortable T-shirt and a pair of shorts and went back into the room. Jacob still sprawled on the bed. Taking pity on him, she took off his shoes and socks. With much pushing and pulling, and a little swearing, she managed to make room on the bed. With a sigh, she tucked in between the sheets, turned away from him

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and fell asleep faster than she ever had in her life. The dream was different this time. It skipped the ballroom and the library and started in the bedroom. She found herself in the bed. Constantine stood next to it, looking down at her. The look on his face terrified her. His hand shot out, lightning fast and gripped her wrist. He yanked her to a sitting position with a brutal pull. Eleanor’s head snapped back in a whiplash-like movement. He bent slowly down until his face was even with hers. “Where are they, Eleanor?” he spat at her. Too frightened to speak, she stared at him. Constantine twisted her wrist until she cried out in pain. “How many Dyads are coming?” he asked through clenched teeth. Eleanor thought her wrist was broken. The pain was like nothing she’d ever felt. “Stop, please,” she cried. “I can’t think.” He eased the pressure a bit. It still hurt, but it didn’t feel like he was twisting her wrist off her arm anymore. “Well, Eleanor, are you going to tell me what you know, or do I have to start getting creative in my efforts?” His hand stroked her from neck to waist. Eleanor looked at him again. From the expression on his face, she knew she was doomed. Even if she told him everything she knew he would still punish her. If he killed her in the dream, would she die in real life? She searched her mind for something to throw him off track. Knowing she was taking her life in her hands, she said the only thing she could think of. “Why, Constantine, you sound frightened,” she said, smiling at him. “How can that be?” His eyes flared with fury as he switched his hold to her ribs and lifted her off the bed. Her feet dangled above the floor. “You think I am frightened?” he roared at her. With each word, he shook her so furiously, her teeth banged against each other and she tasted blood. He squeezed her ribs so hard, she could barely breathe. She managed to say, “No, I don’t think you’re frightened. I think it’s odd you care where they are.” He looked into her eyes as if searching for something, then sneered at her. “You think you can put me off, little one? You are in far over your head.” He lowered her slowly to the bed. “I have thought of a more pleasant way to learn what I need.” He pushed Eleanor down on the bed and covered her with his body. Eleanor knew what was coming. “No,” she cried and started to fight. She twisted, kicked and beat at him, but it was like fighting a wall. None of her blows bothered him in the least. He caught her wrists and raised them above her head. Eleanor started screaming. She woke up, tangled in Jacob’s body. He was holding her wrists over her head, just like Constantine and she struggled against him. “Eleanor, it’s me, Jacob. You’re safe. I have you.” She tried to focus on his face, but couldn’t. All she could feel was Constantine’s hands on her. Her body fought him, bucking and twisting, trying to throw him off.

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Jacob anchored his body firmly over Eleanor. He caught her twisting chin in his hand, forcing her to look at him. “Look at me, open your eyes,” he yelled at her. Her eyes flew open, expecting to see Constantine. “It’s Jacob. You’re safe now. You’re out of the dream and back with me.” He kept up a steady stream of words, trying to get through her panic. Slowly, she was able to focus on Jacob and she stopped struggling. “Jacob,” she said in a small, frightened voice. “Yes, it’s me, Jacob.” He eased his grip on her wrists and moved his legs so they weren’t pinning her. She looked up, finally seeing him, and burst into tears. Her whole body shook with deep sobs. Jacob eased off her and sat on the edge of the bed, pulling her with him. He settled her on his lap, cradling her in his arms, rocking her back and forth as she cried it out. His hands stroked her back. He kissed her hair, murmuring comforting words. “There now, I have you. Please don’t cry, baby. Shhhh…” When the sobs had run themselves out, he handed her tissues and she blew her nose and wiped weakly at her eyes. The shakes were back again, like always. “Are they always this bad?” he asked her. “Not at first, but lately, yes. He’s so different than he used to be. At first, when I still thought they were just dreams, he was gentle with me. I think he was trying to win me over. About two months ago, something happened and he changed. More demanding but at the same time not as sure of himself. That’s when he started hurting me…when he started trying to…” The shaking was violent now. Jacob started to ease her off his lap to get her back under the covers, but she grabbed at him. “No, please, hold me, don’t let go,” she said, as her arms went around his neck in a vise grip. Jacob’s arms went back around her. He started stroking her again. It felt so good to be in his arms. Too good, she thought. He only wants one night, remember? What happens after? Her grip on his neck loosened as his caresses calmed her. She gave herself over to the feel of his stroking hands. Her trembling eased, and then stopped, only to be replaced by another sort of trembling, deep inside her. As he kissed her hair, she sighed with contentment. His kisses trailed to her eyes. Gentle kisses, as if he were afraid of hurting her. His lips brushed hers lightly and moved across her cheek. Wonderful tingles rippled through her as his lips and tongue played with her ear. Her hands moved to thread themselves through his thick hair. “Eleanor,” he whispered in her ear. The soft voice made her go weak in his arms. His voice had always done something to her, always sent erotic shivers up her spine. Was this finally going to happen? After months of waiting and fantasizing she could hardly believe she was in his arms, her body vibrating at his touch. As his hands circled

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from her back to glide over her ribs, she let go of any reservations about one-night stands. If she could only have one night in Jacob’s arms, it would be enough. His lips found hers. Biting lightly, licking, teasing them open. When she parted her lips he kissed her deeply, his tongue playing with hers. Anticipation grew as his fingers found their way under her T-shirt to caress the sensitive area around her navel. Unable to stop, she leaned back invitingly and his hand found her breast. When pleasure shot through her, she moaned deep in her throat as he softly circled her nipple with his finger. His right hand came from behind to claim her other breast and she reveled at the feel of both his hands on her. With a groan, he tore his mouth away from hers and watched what his hands were doing. “Take off your shirt,” he asked in a whiskey-rough voice. Her fingers shook as she slipped her T-shirt over her head. His mouth continued down her body, nipping, teasing and sucking until it hovered over her nipple. Taking his time, he licked gently until she was whimpering with need. Pulling his head closer, she urged him on. When he drew her into his mouth, she felt the pull of it all through her body. She felt him sliding her shorts down her legs. Dimly, she realized she was naked in his arms. She should be embarrassed or at least concerned, but his mouth found her other nipple and all thought slipped away. As if of its own accord, her body started to move in his arms. Leaning farther back over his arm, she gave him better access to her breasts. Calloused hands caressed her thighs, urging them apart. She spread her legs unashamedly and cried out as his fingers found her most intimate spot. He drove her frantic as he stroked her. He shifted her in his arms and kissed her again, his tongue mirroring what his fingers were doing, pushing in and out of her, gently stroking until she thought she would go mad with need. “Please, Jacob,” she gasped as her hips moved against his hand. He lifted her off his lap and laid her on the bed. She felt cold and empty as he left the circle of her arms and stood before her. When he started to unbutton his shirt she rose to kneel before him on the bed. “Here, let me,” she said. As she unfastened each button, she kissed the area of exposed chest. At the last button, his arms tightened on her. “Wait, Eleanor.” She looked up at him in disbelief. “We have to talk first. There are things I have to tell you. Things about me and…” he trailed off when she resumed kissing his chest. “No, Jacob,” she said, between kisses. “I don’t care anymore. One night, two nights, it doesn’t matter. No more talking, no more waiting.” “Eleanor,” he began, but stopped when her mouth found his nipple. Moaning softly, he buried his hands in her hair and pulled her closer. She unfastened his belt and pulled at his zipper while her tongue trailed down to explore his navel. He pulled her back up his body for a kiss and she reveled in the feel of her breasts brushing against his bare chest. She pushed his jeans over his hips and cupped his

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backside with her hands. His breathing was ragged as he stepped out of his jeans. Peeling his briefs down, she watched as he sprang free and felt a moment of trepidation at the size of him, fully erect. Her fingers moved to touch him, like Sleeping Beauty and the spinning wheel. He gasped as she touched him and moved closer to her. She used her fingers much as he had with her, gently stroking at first, building to a rougher caress. A feeling of feminine power and wonder came over her as he jerked beneath her fingers. “God, Eleanor,” he said as his fingers closed over hers. Taking her hands off him, he pushed her back to lie on the bed and covered her body with his. As if he couldn’t get enough, his mouth and hands explored every inch of her. Trailing her hands over his muscular back and tight buttocks, Eleanor marveled at the feel of him. He was hard everywhere. All male. He rose suddenly and stood by the bed. Gently, he pulled her to the edge, spreading her legs wide, settling her bent knees over his arms. Time stopped as he looked down at her. Eleanor thought the sight of him looking at her fully exposed was the most exotic thing she had ever experienced. Jacob’s eyes roamed up her body until their eyes met. The same need she felt was reflected back at her. When he leaned his body into hers she felt him stroking against her. “Please, Jacob.” His hands circled her waist and he pulled her closer. With one swift stroke he entered her. They both cried out. She felt him trying to hold back, to be gentle, but she urged him on with her body. He thrust deeper and harder, unable to check himself. Her body met his, thrust for thrust, the sweet friction building. His hands roamed over her body, cupping her breasts as he continued to drive into her. When fingers moved between her legs and stroked her, she felt her release coming. “Look at me, Eleanor,” he gasped. She opened her eyes and saw him looking at her. He hooked her bent knees over his shoulders, spreading her wider beneath him. Looking into her eyes, he thrust deeply into her body. With their gazes locked on each other, her release came. A moment later he joined her, crying out as he came inside her. It was the most intimate moment she had ever experienced. Jacob lowered her legs and collapsed on top of her. After a few minutes, he withdrew and settled beside her. When she could think again, she turned to him. “What did you want to tell me?” She smiled warmly when she saw he was sleeping, exhausted. She snuggled into him, spoon-fashion, pulling the covers over them and settled down to sleep.

***** Jacob woke to the wonderful sensation of Eleanor’s naked body pressed against 130

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him. He must have fallen asleep. How could he have wasted precious hours of this night sleeping? She was sleeping too, but he would soon remedy that. With a sense of wonder, he took a moment to close his eyes and let his other senses drink her in. She smelled of sweet soap, herbal shampoo and her, the wonderful, light, fresh smell of Eleanor. Her back snuggled against his front and he allowed his hands to caress her shoulders, marveling at her silky, smooth skin. She was so beautiful. Not the flashy, carefully polished beauty that was the fashion these days, but the kind of beauty that grew stronger every time he looked at her. A beauty that came from deep within her to settle in pockets of his heart he’d thought long dead. One night wasn’t going to be enough. He knew that now. He’d known it from the moment he’d seen her. Their connection had been strong from the start, and now… She’d given herself to him with such honesty, holding nothing back. He felt himself harden against her luscious, tempting backside. Threading his hands under her arms, he cradled her full breasts. He sensed her waking as he felt her nipples harden. Rising slightly, he nibbled her neck as his hand trailed down her body, stroking her back to life. “I want you,” he whispered in her ear. Her response was to press back against him and move her body up and down the length of him. He couldn’t wait. In one fluid movement, he lifted her leg slightly, shifted his hips and entered her. Her answering moan made him feel so strong, in control. She was velvet, wet velvet, so tight and warm around him he almost went over the edge, but he held on, wanting to prolong their pleasure. This time he was gentle, relying on technique instead of strength. When he felt she was close, he shifted her upper body to allow his mouth access to her breasts. His hand trailed down to settle between her legs, caressing her as she moaned his name. The sound of his name on her lips sparked something deep inside him and all thought of gentleness fled. Tearing his mouth from her breast, he held her tighter and quickened his pace. “Say my name again,” he gasped against her hair. “Jacob, Jacob, Jacob,” she cried out his name with each thrust. She dissolved in his arms, arching her back and screaming her release. The feel and sound of it sent him over the edge and he emptied into her, thrusting long after each of them was spent, not wanting it to end. She fell asleep in his arms with a sexy, contented smile on her lips he took great pride in putting there. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. He was right. One night wasn’t going to be enough. Twice more during the night, Jacob woke her with his touch. Eleanor had never felt so cherished, so wanted. She knew she was lost. There was no coming back from the way she felt about Jacob. He was love of her life. The man she had been looking for. Even if it was just tonight, at least she’d found him. Most people never did. Most people

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settled. Where would it all end?

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Chapter Nineteen Eleanor awoke slowly, in stages, warm and safe in Jacob’s arms. With her eyes closed, she imagined they were in their own little world. No Dyads, no Constantine, no men with guns. Just Eleanor and Jacob. She snuggled closer to him and sighed with contentment. “Lovely,” a masculine voice said. Eleanor’s eyes flew open. She saw Damien or David, she didn’t know which, standing at the foot of the bed. He had two men with him. She let out a surprised squeak. At the sound of her voice, Jacob came awake in a flash. With a growl he bolted up in bed and pushed Eleanor behind him, shielding her with his body. “Be calm, Jacob. It is us,” David said in a soothing voice. “We did not mean to disturb you.” “Oh yes we did,” a dark-haired man next to David said. “I don’t think we’ve ever disturbed Jacob in quite this way before. I am delighted to be the one disturbing, instead of being disturbed for once.” “Considering some of the dung heaps we’ve had to drag you out of, Aiden, I wouldn’t be so cocky,” a man on David’s other side said. “Oh that’s right, Luke,” Aiden said. “I’d forgotten about your sister’s house.” Eleanor peeked out from behind Jacob. She felt very much at a disadvantage. She was in a room with four men, without a stitch on. When Jacob had pushed her behind him, he’d thrown the covers on the floor, out of reach, and unless she wanted to parade around naked in front of them all, she had to stay put. As if reading her mind, the man called Aiden picked up a sheet from the floor and came toward the bed. “I’m ashamed of you, Jacob,” he said with a teasing grin. “Have you no regard for your lady’s feelings? She finds herself in a delicate position, confronted by group of strange men while wearing nothing but her smile. And a lovely smile it is,” he said, winking at her. “And you do not rush to ease her discomfort.” He unfurled the sheet and floated it down around Eleanor’s shoulders. She grabbed at it gratefully and wrapped it around her body. Jacob stood up from the bed. Being naked in front of so many people didn’t seem to bother him. “You needn’t worry about Eleanor. I will see to her comfort,” Jacob said. He put his hand on Aiden’s chest and backed him up to arm’s length. Aiden had a twinkle in his eyes. His lopsided grin never wavered as he said, “I can’t argue with you there. She looked very comfortable when we came in.” Jacob gripped the front of Aiden’s shirt in his fist and pulled him to him. 133

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“Enough, Jacob, Aiden,” David said, pushing the two men apart. “We have no time for this.” Eleanor heard a familiar voice from the door. “Okay, guys, I’ve rented three more of these cottages, or whatever they are. At these prices they should be palaces. Why does…” Mike stopped talking as he took in the scene, David holding Jacob and Aiden apart, and Eleanor tucking the sheet around herself. “You see,” he said. “This always happens to me. I go off to do the grunt work and miss all the juicy stuff. Whoa, Jacob.” He held up his hand to shield his eyes. “That’s more of you than I ever needed to see. Nice sheet, Ellie. Wrong color for you, though.” Luke burst out laughing, breaking the tension in the room. David managed to break Jacob and Aiden apart. He turned to address the whole room. “May I suggest we adjourn to one of the other cottages? Michael, are the others waiting for us?” “Sure, they’re right next door. Come on,” Mike said, leading the way out. Luke moved to follow him, while David and Aiden stayed behind. Aiden turned back to Jacob, opening his arms in a peacemaking gesture. “I meant no offence, Jacob. I couldn’t resist a little teasing. This is my first opportunity in decades, after all.” He turned to Eleanor. “If I have offended you, my lady, you have my deepest apologies.” He made a low, graceful bow, straightened up, and with a slap on Jacob’s shoulder, swaggered out of the room. David moved closer to the bed. “Eleanor, finally we meet. You are more beautiful than I imagined,” he said and kissed her hand. “I am sorry if our abrupt arrival has disconcerted you. I have not been able to contact Jacob for a few hours and we feared the worst. I am very relieved to find you both safe and sound.” “I forgot to plug in my cell when we got here,” Jacob said. “I’m sure it’s dead by now.” “That is of no matter. And now, if the two of you are properly,” he paused searching for a word, “rested,” he continued with a grin. “Please join us next door as soon as you can. We must plan our next move.” David gave them one more smile and left the room, closing the door behind him. After he left, Eleanor and Jacob stared at each other, somewhat bewildered. Eleanor had so many emotions swirling around she couldn’t focus on any one. She felt humiliated, besotted, embarrassed, euphoric, frightened and shy, and those were just the emotions she could pin down. Jacob sat down on the bed next to her. He picked up her hand and kissed her palm. “This was not the way I planned on waking you up. I wish they had taken longer to get here. Last night was perfect. I have so much to tell you. Things I should have told you before we…” Eleanor cupped his face in her hands and moved closer to him. “It’s not important. None of it will change the way I feel about you.”

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“Don’t say that. You may regret it later.” She gently kissed him. “I will never regret last night. No matter what happens in the future, I will never regret you.” Jacob let out the breath he’d been holding and drew her close. He nibbled her ear and Eleanor felt the now familiar tingle starting. He traced a path to her mouth and pulled at the sheet tightly wrapped around her. She raised her arms to circle his neck and the sheet fell to her waist. Jacob laid her on the bed, following her down with his body. His mouth started working its magic on her neck. His fingers found her nipple and squeezed gently. He lifted his head up and looked into her eyes. "I can’t get enough of you,” he said, as he lowered his mouth to hers. He settled between her legs, pulling the sheet aside. Eleanor moaned as she felt him hard against her. Someone banged on the door. “Ahh…guys…” Mike said in an embarrassed voice. “David says to stop what you’re, you know, doing in there. He ahh…says Jacob is broadcasting too close to the others and everyone can feel what you’re, you know, doing. So, anyway, you know, quit it and come on over. We’re all next door in number nine. So, okay then, I’m going back, ahh…bye.” Eleanor heard him muttering something as he walked away. Jacob lowered his head to her forehead. “Damn,” he said. “I forgot to shield. You make me forget everything but you.” “What did Mike mean, they could feel what we’re doing?” asked Eleanor, afraid to hear the answer. “It’s just one of the many things I haven’t told you about me. Unless I shield, the others can feel what I’m feeling. We spend most of the time shielded. It’s too confusing otherwise.” Eleanor felt her face color. “Oh, my God,” she said, horrified. “They all could feel what you were feeling? They felt me? How can I face them all?” “I’m to blame, Eleanor. I keep doing things I know I shouldn’t.” “What does that mean?” “No, love, no, that’s not what I meant. Come, we’d best get up and go over there. They’re waiting. We’ll talk later.” He got up and offered her his hand. She took it and he pulled her up after him. When she was standing, he stepped away and looked at her, heat flooding his eyes. “You’d best hurry and dress before I forget myself again.” She looked down his body and saw the reason for his caution. Grabbing her suitcase, she hurried into the bathroom. There only was time for a quick shower. She dressed as fast as she could, choosing an old pair of jeans and a turtleneck. After what had happened, she wanted as many clothes on as possible. When she went back into the room, Jacob was dressed and waiting for her. “Ready?” he asked.

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“As ready as I’ll ever be. Can’t I run somewhere and hide?” she said, feeling herself blushing again. “I’m afraid not. Best to get it over with. These are good men, Eleanor. I’ve trusted each of them with my life, countless times. No harm will come to you through them. Come on.” He took her hand and led her to the cottage next door. She took a deep breath and followed him in. The cottage was an exact copy of the one in which she and Jacob had been staying. This one seemed even smaller because of all the men in it. They’d brought in extra chairs from somewhere. All the men stood as she entered. Eleanor’s gaze swept around the room. It looked like a Chippendale convention. They were all tall, broad-shouldered and absolutely gorgeous. In every one of their faces, she saw varying degrees of appraisal and lust directed at her. Her face grew hot. She moved closer to Jacob for support. David came to greet them. “Jacob, Eleanor, thank you for joining us. Eleanor, please allow me to introduce you to the others. I believe you have had some conversation with my partner, Aiden,” he said as Aiden came up to stand beside him. Aiden took her hand. “I believe I speak for all of us when I say it is our pleasure to meet you, Eleanor. You have made quite an impression on every one of us.” Jacob made a deep warning sound and put his arm around Eleanor’s waist. David moved to two blond men standing together. “This is Sebastian and his brother, Samuel. They are the Goddard Dyad.” Eleanor looked at them, amazed. This was the first time she had seen a Dyad together. They were tall, like the others, with white-blond shoulder-length hair. Their eyes were so light a blue, as to be almost colorless. This made the Dyad feature of large pupils even more pronounced in them. Because of their light hair, they looked even paler than Damien and David. Both had a Dudley Do-Right chin. The overall effect was stunning. They belonged on the cover of a romance novel. The way they looked was not solely what took her breath away. It was their sameness. They were exactly the same, copies, down to the last strand of hair. Not for the first time since meeting Damien and Jacob, she had the feeling what she was looking at wasn’t real. She had seen identical twins before. Usually, when you put the twins next to each other, you could pick out small differences. A slightly longer nose, a higher eyebrow, or some scar so you could tell them apart, at least when they stood next to each other. Not so with Sebastian and Samuel. It was like looking at the faces of two Ken dolls, pressed out of the same mold. They even had identical half moon scars on their right cheekbones. One of them took her hand. “I am Sebastian. I am pleased to make your acquaintance,” he said formally. He bowed over her hand and kissed it. As he straightened, he gestured to the man who had teased Aiden about the dung heaps. “This is my partner, Luke.” Luke came toward her smiling the most beautiful smile she had ever seen. It 136

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changed his face from handsome to deadly. Deadly, as in lady-killer. Any woman who saw that smile directed at her was lost. He was another dark-haired, firm-chinned, broad-shouldered wonder. He stopped beside Sebastian and took her hand. “Eleanor, how wonderful to meet the woman who has so shaken up our stoic Jacob. I would like to say, however, if you ever tire of him, I hope you will think of me. I feel I know you so well.” He bowed to kiss her hand and at the last second turned it over to kiss her wrist instead. She felt the flick of his tongue against her skin. Jacob reached over and took her hand firmly away from Luke. The look he gave the dark-haired man would have sent most men running, but Luke only laughed and slapped Jacob on the shoulder. The other half of the Goddard Dyad pushed Luke out of the way. “I am Samuel, welcome to our circle. This is my partner, Emil,” he said, gesturing to a man who had kept back from the others. Emil came forward, blushing. He took her hand briefly. “Pleased to meet you,” he said in a shy voice. Emil looked the youngest of the group, except for Mike. He had curly brown hair and lovely sky blue eyes. He backed away from her quickly. “And, of course, you know Michael,” David said, gesturing to the redhead. Mike waved to her from where he stood. “Hi,” he said. “Nice to see you again.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively. “Hi, Mike,” she said too nervous to tease him back. Eleanor looked at them. “It’s nice to meet all of you,” she said to the room. “Now, let us all sit,” David said. They moved the chairs into a loose circle and sat down. They were one chair short, so Mike sat on the bed. When they were all settled, Jacob asked, “What has happened since we last spoke?” “The two vans reached their destination about seventeen hours ago,” David said. “Damien sent images of a large guarded estate. There are three buildings. One large house and two smaller guest houses. He saw them take Simon to one of the guest houses. Damien was taken to the large house and is being held in a small room in the basement.” “How does he fare?” Jacob asked anxiously. “So far he is fine. He is conserving his strength. They served him some drugged fruit that he pretended to eat, but they caught on. It is hard to pretend to eat an apple. They injected him instead. It was truth serum. He has been questioned by Bernie, the man in charge of the group that took him, and another man, who we think is the source of this conflict.” “Who is he? Do we know?” Jacob asked. “Aiden?” David said, motioning Aiden to take over. “Yes, we have him,” Aiden stated. “As soon as David gave me the address I searched the web for the owner. It took me a while, someone was covering their tracks 137

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very carefully, but I found him. His name is Quentin Meir, a millionaire before he was born.” Aiden passed a photograph around the room. “He took the family money and invested heavily in chemical plants. He now owns plants in America, Switzerland and Canada. At least that’s what is public knowledge. He’s a billionaire now, with money hidden all over the world.” Eleanor watched Aiden closely. He was no longer the easy, teasing man she had known so far. This new Aiden was no-nonsense, all business. She couldn’t believe the change. “What does he want Damien for?” Eleanor asked, surprising herself. All the male eyes turned to Jacob, who looked back at them and nodded slightly. Eleanor wondered what had happened, but Samuel started to answer her. At least she thought it was Samuel, she’d lost track. “Immortality, Eleanor. Like most rich and powerful men who are faced with their demise, he is looking for a way out. He thinks he has found it in us.” “But what about Constantine?” she asked. “I thought he was behind all this. He certainly was frantic to find out when and how many of you were coming.” “What do you mean?” David asked. She couldn’t suppress a shiver as she told them about her latest dream. “We do not know where Constantine fits into this anymore,” David said. “Damien has tried to link with him, but he is still shut off.” At David’s words, some of the men made disgusted noises. “He could be controlling Quentin Meir, or it could be the other way around.” “We could use Eleanor’s link with Constantine to find out,” Aiden said. Jacob stood. “Absolutely not. We almost killed her the last time. Constantine’s power is like nothing I have felt before. Tell them, David,” he demanded. “Jacob is quite right,” David said. “If I had known how strong Con has become, I never would have used Eleanor so.” “We cannot go in blind like this,” Luke said. “We must know what to expect from Con. If he is this man’s prisoner, it is possible he is waiting for us to rescue him. If not Eleanor’s link, then what?” “I have a plan I think will work,” David said. “Michael, will you go next door and ask the others to join us?” Michael sprang up and ran out of the room. Jacob looked around questioningly, but no one said anything. The picture of Quentin Meir Aiden had passed around the room had made its way to Eleanor. She gasped. “I’ve seen this man before.” “Where?” Jacob and Aiden asked simultaneously. Eleanor shuddered. “Back in Minnesota. He was at the house the night we rescued Alice. You didn’t get a good look at him, Jacob, but I sure got an eyeful.”

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Jacob took the picture from her and looked at it closely. “Are you sure? I don’t remember this face.” “You were busy looking for a way up to the balcony. This is the older man from the second room. He was watching the couple…well.” She stopped and was furious when she felt herself blush again. “Anyway,” she continued, “he was there.” “Thank you, my dear,” David said. “So they met at least three months ago, maybe longer. Constantine has allied with some very deep pockets indeed. I wonder what the alliance has cost him?” Eleanor stood, terrified. Constantine framed the doorway. She reached back for Jacob’s arm. “Jacob,” she managed to say. “Is he really there, or am I dreaming again?” She shook so badly she could barely stand. Jacob rose and took her in his arms. “It’s Christopher, love, Constantine’s brother. It’s all right.” Christopher came toward Eleanor. He moved slowly, as if it hurt him to walk. He held his hands out in supplication. “Eleanor,” he said. Eleanor gasped and backed away, pulling Jacob with her. That voice, she thought. That’s his voice. Christopher stopped his advance. “Eleanor, please allow me to offer my sincere apologies for what Con has done to you and your family. He has forever shamed our Dyad with his treatment of you.” Eleanor examined the man in front of her. He looked tired and wan, not at all like the other Dyads she had met. Something was wrong with him. Christopher took a step back and raised a hand to his forehead. “What has he done to her that she would react to me so?” Another man had come in behind Christopher. Eleanor had been too frightened to notice him. He looked old compared with the other men. Deep lines stood out on his face and gray streaked his hair. He took Christopher’s hand and Eleanor felt a tingle against her skin. Christopher looked better at once. “Thank you, James,” he said. Eleanor got a grip on herself. If Jacob said this wasn’t Constantine but Christopher, she would believe him. Christopher had never done anything to hurt her and he looked so unhappy. She went to Christopher. “I’m sorry for the way I acted. It was a shock, that’s all. You are so like him, even your voice. Please forgive me.” She offered him a trembling hand. Christopher looked at her as he took her hand. “You’re very kind, Eleanor. You grace us with your presence here.” Christopher’s partner, James, introduced himself and took his place behind the chair. David came up to Eleanor. “Our apologies again. I did not think of the reaction you would have upon seeing Christopher.” They all settled back in their chairs, with Emil joining Mike on the bed.

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“What’s your plan?” Jacob asked. David looked at Eleanor. “With Eleanor’s permission, we will use her link with Constantine to reestablish Christopher’s link with him.” Jacob shot to his feet. “Are you out of your mind? Put Eleanor between two Dyad brothers in a fight? That would make the other day seem like a walk in the park. She would never survive.” Eleanor put a hand on Jacob’s arm to calm him. She turned to David. “Please explain.” “No, Eleanor,” Jacob said. “You cannot even think of doing this. Do you understand me?” Eleanor stood. “Let’s at least listen to David. I don’t think he would put my life in danger. Would you, David?” she said, raising one eyebrow at him. “Please, Jacob, sit back down and let me explain,” David said. Jacob sat down reluctantly and crossed his arms. Eleanor sat next to him. David stood and moved to the center of the circle. “It will not be as it was before when I pushed the link between Eleanor and Con. We will not use her as the conduit for the Balance. She will simply link with Constantine, taking Christopher with her. As soon as the link is established, we will pull her out, leaving Christopher behind.” Christopher spoke, “I should be able to access Con in a moment. I will try to bring him back into the Balance.” “Do you think he will let you?” Samuel asked. “He is the one who broke with you.” Christopher lowered his head. “I must try. I cannot leave him outside the Balance. For both our lives and the lives of our partners, I must try. In the last contact I had with him, I could tell he was hiding something from me. He was half mad, not making any sense. It is my hope this man Meir is holding Con against his will. If that is the case, when I link with him, I should be able to help him break away. If not…if Con really is behind all this, we must…” Christopher looked up at all of them with a sad smile on his face. “We must travel on.” The room exploded with angry male voices. Eleanor remembered “travel on” meant die. Everyone except Eleanor and Christopher were on their feet, talking at once. “Peace!” Christopher shouted above the voices. The men quieted at once. “My friends, you do not know what it has been like. I am half alive without him. I feel empty, hollow. When I reach for the Balance it is a shadow, not the comfort it once was. I can no longer give back to James what I have taken. He weakens.” James bristled behind him. “I am still strong enough for the both of us,” he said putting his hand on his partner’s shoulder. Christopher shook his head. “James is in decline and I can no longer stop it. He will not let me break our link.” “I will die first,” James said fiercely. “You see how he is?” Christopher said with a tried smile. “Always the stubborn, 140

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hard-headed mule.” “Let us help you feed to James,” David said. “We tried that at the Diarchy. Without Con or Simon, our Balance is off and so is anyone who links with us.” Everyone in the room looked grim. Eleanor didn’t know exactly what was going on, but she had a pretty good idea. Without Constantine and Simon, Christopher and James were dying. Eleanor got up and went to Christopher. “I will help you in any way I can.” “No,” Jacob said from behind her. Eleanor turned to him. “Quiet,” David said clamping his hand on Jacob’s shoulder. Eleanor turned back to Christopher. “I think you may be right about Constantine. Something has happened to him. When the dreams first started, he was very sure of his power, very confident in his purpose. But lately, with the exception of the last dream, I have seen regret in his eyes. You may yet be able to save him.” Christopher rose and staggered. James steadied him from behind. “You are a gift to us, Eleanor. You give us hope where I thought there was only hopelessness. You are truly a good being.” “You should meet my sister,” she said, smiling up at him. She turned to David. “What do I need to do?” “Wait,” Jacob said, shaking off David’s hand. “What are we going to do to guarantee Eleanor’s safety?” “Wait a moment,” David said. “We cannot attempt to link yet.” “Why?” James said. “Why wait any longer? Don’t you see the pain Chris is in?” David’s face softened in pity. “Yes, James, we all can see what this is costing both of you. But what if Chris and Eleanor are wrong? What if Con is the leader here? If we link before we are ready, he will know we are here. We will lose our advantage. No, I’m afraid we must wait until the last possible second to link.” “You can’t mean what I think you do,” Jacob said. David turned to face Jacob. “Yes, Jacob, I do. Eleanor must come with us to confront them.” “Has everyone suddenly lost their mind?” Jacob snapped. “Eleanor is not a trained fighter. She cannot use the Balance. She is not of the Diarchy. This is not even her fight, she was dragged into it. We do not risk the innocent.” David was angry now. Eleanor could tell from his eyes. They looked like Constantine’s often had. “Must I remind you, Jacob, that it is your partner who was taken? Where is your oath? Where is your loyalty? Stop acting like a lovesick boy and think. Eleanor’s is not the only life in danger.” Jacob stood there, a confused look on his face. He glanced back at Eleanor. She nodded at him to let him know she was ready to help in any way she could. He turned

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to look at Christopher and James. There was something in James’ eyes. A silent plea for help that seemed to calm Jacob. He turned back to David. “Forgive me,” he said, sitting back down next to Eleanor. “Let us plan,” David said as he took his seat.

***** Thirty minutes later they had a well-formed plan. They would wait until full dark and approach the estate in three groups. The first group consisted of Sebastian and Samuel with their partners, Luke and Emil. They would take care of the guards and find and free Simon. Group two was David, Aiden and Jacob. They would find Damien and then go after Constantine. The last group was Christopher, James and Eleanor. They would try the link from outside the estate. If all went well, Eleanor would go back to the vehicles and wait with Mike. Christopher and James would go to Constantine. “Now then,” David said, standing. “If no one has any questions, I suggest we rest and build strength for the…” Suddenly David cried out and doubled over. Aiden was beside him in an instant. “What is it, David?” he asked, placing him gently in a chair. David jerked again. This time he went backward, his hands to his face. When he brought his hands away, they were covered in blood.

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Chapter Twenty David wiped the blood on his jeans. “I feared this would happen,” he said. “They are trying to force our hand. They are torturing Damien.” He cried out again as blood shot out of his nose. “That’s it. We must move now,” Luke said. “No,” all the Dyads said. Samuel continued, “It is only pain. We have mastered pain. We must not give in to this ploy. Sebastian and I will link with David and Aiden. We will heal the internal injuries, but leave the surface wounds alone. It has been my experience that torturers only work harder if they see their work healed. Come, brother.” Samuel and Sebastian moved to David. Eleanor watched closely as they established the link. It was different this time. As soon as the two brothers looked at each other, she felt a tingle. The power had a different feel to it, stronger, crisper and cleaner somehow. When the two touched, the force came off them in waves. She turned to Jacob. “Why does the power feel so different this time?” “You have not been in the presence of a Dyad linking before. They touch the Balance directly. It is a pure and beautiful thing.” Samuel raised his head and Eleanor saw the power blazing in his eyes. He reached for David, who had established his link with Aiden. When Samuel and David joined hands, Eleanor felt the power dance over her skin. The pain left David’s face at once. “Are they helping Damien too?” Eleanor asked in a hushed voice. Jacob answered her. “Yes, as David heals, so does Damien.” For the next hour, Eleanor watched as Damien and David were tortured. She’d never seen anything like it. New welts and cuts would appear on David’s face and arms. As she watched, a feeling of helplessness came over her. The others milled around like caged beasts. Unable to stand aside and do nothing, she went for water and towels to clean David’s wounds. Kneeling in front of him, she bathed his face. He looked at her gratefully. “Thank you, Eleanor,” he said. “You have a light touch.” Finally, it stopped. “How are you both?” Jacob asked. “Except for surface wounds, we are fine,” David said. “Tell Damien to re-establish our link. I can help him,” Jacob pleaded. “No, Jacob. Con can get into your link with Damien. He cannot touch my link with

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him. It is too dangerous for Damien to link with you now. He would use part of his strength protecting you. Is that what you want?” “Of course not,” Jacob muttered. “Be patient a while longer. We move at sunset,” David said. “Rest until then, everyone.” They moved David to the bed. Eleanor insisted on staying until all his wounds were cleaned and bandaged. Jacob paced nervously behind her. “That’s the best I can do for now,” she said to David. “You still look a mess, I’m afraid.” David’s bottom lip was split, his left eye was almost swollen shut, a nasty bruise was forming on his right cheekbone and his perfect nose was not so perfect anymore. He raised his head to look at Eleanor through his swollen eye. “It has been a long time since I have been ministered to with such tender care. It is almost worth the beating. Damien sends his thanks as well.” “How is he?” Jacob asked David sighed deeply. “I can see you will not be satisfied with my meager assurances. Come, Jacob.” He held out his hand to him. “We will try a secondary link. Constantine would have to be linked with Damien to sense you. I think we will be safe.” Jacob moved eagerly to the bed and sat down next to David. Eleanor watched as Jacob took a few deep breaths. His eyes took on a faraway look. When David clasped his hand, Jacob gasped. “You’d think after so long, it wouldn’t affect us so much,” Aiden said. He had moved to stand beside Eleanor. “It’s as if each time is like the first. Of course nothing can match the wonder of that moment, but each time we feel power building, we are undone by the beauty of it all, amazed at what we have inside.” “Why did you decide to become David’s partner?” she asked. “Oh, Eleanor, that is a long, sad, tale.” “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry,” she said quickly. “It’s just that Damien told me partners have to cut ties with everyone they know. I was wondering if it was worth it.” Aiden looked at her and smiled sadly. “In my case it was. I’d lost everyone to the plague. I could do nothing to save them. One by one, I watched them all die. When David found me in London, I was half mad with grief.” She thought she’d heard him wrong. “Aiden, did you say the plague? The plague, as in the Black Death?” Aiden’s brow furrowed. “Yes, the very same. It swept through Europe, decimating the population. It killed young and old, rich and poor. It showed no mercy.” She stared at him. An uneasy feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. “How old are you, Aiden?” she asked.

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Aiden looked at her, confused. He glanced over at the bed. Jacob was still deep in the link with David and Damien. Aiden shook his head and turned back to Eleanor. “Hasn’t Jacob told you about the nature of partners?” Eleanor backed away from him. “What are you talking about? How old are you, Aiden?” she demanded. He held out his hands. “Be calm, Eleanor. Everything is as it was a few moments ago. You’re in no danger from anyone here.” She kept backing away toward the door. “Tell me how old you are. I need to hear it. I think I’ll go crazy otherwise.” Aiden stopped coming toward her. He let his hands fall to his sides. With a shrug he said, “I’m four-hundred-thirty-two, but my friends say I don’t look it.” “That-that’s not possible,” she stammered. “After everything you’ve seen of us, you know it is. I’m sorry, Eleanor. I know, it can be a shock.” “But Damien told me partners were human. Just like me. You can’t be that old. It simply isn’t possible.” She put her hand to her mouth to stop herself from screaming. She glanced over at Jacob. Tears filled her eyes. Jacob and David ended their link. Jacob smiled as he rose from the bed and turned to her. “He’s fine. More angry than I’ve ever known him. I almost pity this Meir fellow. Damien’s going to…” Jacob took a long look at Eleanor. She stood at the door with her hand over her mouth. “What’s wrong, Eleanor? Has something happened?” He moved toward her. She put a hand out to stop him. “No,” she cried. “I can’t.” She looked at each of them. Indecision hit her hard. She had no idea who these men were. What was she doing here? “Everyone dies,” she whispered and fled the room. Jacob rounded on Aiden. “What the hell did you do to her?” Aiden looked at Jacob with concern. “I’m sorry, Jacob. I thought you or Damien had told her about us. David included her in the circle. I had no idea I should keep silent.” Jacob felt cold inside. “There has been no time since… I was determined not to take her. You know how our women suffer. I didn’t want that for her. But I-I can’t control myself when she’s near.” “You could not stop this from happening,” David said from the bed. “Damien and I have both felt it. Some things are meant to be. We think you have met your match, Jacob. You have found your perfect Balance in Eleanor.” Aiden clapped him on the shoulder. “Now, don’t mess it up. Go after her, man.”

***** Eleanor sat at the small kitchen table in their cottage. When Jacob came in she looked up at him and didn’t bother to hide the tears streaming down her cheeks. “This

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is never going to work, is it?” she said between sobs. “You and me. It’s impossible. That’s what you were trying to tell me last night. That’s why you kept pushing me away.” Jacob pulled the other chair next to hers. He sat down, took a handkerchief out of his pocket and gently wiped the tears from her face. “Don’t cry, love. It kills me to see you cry.” “How old are you, Jacob?” Jacob sat back in his chair, looking at her sadly. “Old enough to have fought in the Civil War.” “I see,” she said. She stopped crying. “How does it work? How do you keep from aging?” “When Damien found me all those years ago, I was forty-eight. Forty-eight wasn’t what it is now. My body had started its decline. I had pains in my legs, gray in my hair and I couldn’t see worth a damn. Not that I cared much. I’d come home from the war to find my family dead. My brother, Jonathan, you remember, I told you about him. Your sister reminds me of him. He ran afoul of the local authorities. They were corrupt, you see. John got between them and some store merchants they were extorting money from. As an example, they killed him, they killed them all. Burned down my parents’ house with everyone inside. Shot anyone who made it out alive. “It took me fifteen years, but I found the men responsible. I tracked them down and killed them, one by one. When the last of them was dead, I found I had no purpose in my life. I was hollow, empty, wandering aimlessly. That’s when I met Damien. “He gave me a new purpose. He healed more than just my body. As to how it all works, Damien told me the Balance brings the body to its perfect condition, its prime. For each individual, the age we end up at is different because each body is different. I ended up as you see me now. Somewhere in my early thirties. Each time Damien gives me back the Balance, my body is renewed, set back to its perfect state.” “I’m so sorry about your family.” “It was a long time ago, Eleanor.” She looked at him and sighed. “So, I will grow old and die and you will stay the same forever. At best we can have what, maybe twenty years, before I feel so much older than you I can’t stand it and have to leave? I bet that’s about right, isn’t it?” “What do you mean?” he asked softly. “This can’t be the first time this has happened. How many women have you had in one hundred and sixty years?” “None,” he said. She looked at him doubtfully. “None, not one woman in all that time?” “Not for more than one night, or a few nights at best.” “Oh that’s right,” she said. “I forgot. You haven’t exactly asked me to stick around, have you? I thought we got past the whole one-night-stand thing, but I guess I was 146

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wrong.” “You know that’s not true. I tried to tell you about me last night. I wanted you to know before you gave yourself to me.” He took her hand. “Eleanor, please believe me, I did try. I have watched others keep their women close. I have seen what happens. I didn’t want that for you. The years together are all too short. “When I first met him, Simon had a woman. Melinda. They were a perfect Balance. Their love was deep and strong. He thought about leaving Constantine, but Melinda wouldn’t hear of it. She would not cost him his immortality. Such a wonderful woman. We all loved her a little. “When she left, something broke in Simon. He told Con he was leaving, he had to find Melinda and live out whatever time they had left. We all helped him search for her.” Eleanor looked at him expectantly. He’d stopped talking, lost in memory. “Did you ever find her?” she asked. “What we found…” He looked at Eleanor with pain etched on his face. “That sweet, wonderful, courageous woman had taken her life shortly after she left Simon. She simply couldn’t go on without him. “It’s taken over one hundred years for Simon to get back some equilibrium in his life. He was always the first to volunteer for the most dangerous missions. As if he didn’t care if he lived or died. Only his link with Con kept him grounded, kept him going, existing.” “Did you ever talk to Melinda about it? I mean, what did she think of her life with Simon?” “She told me once that one day with Simon was worth any price. The day she left, she asked me to watch over Simon, to help him if I could. Don’t feel sorry for me, she said. I’ve had what most women only dream of.” Jacob looked at Eleanor with trepidation. “You should’ve known all this before you gave yourself to me. It wasn’t fair of me. I was intending to tell you, but I couldn’t stop myself. I wanted you so badly.” He ran a hand thorough his hair. “I did try.” Eleanor felt the fight go out of her. “I know you did. It was my fault. I wanted you too. I gave you no time to explain. I was done with waiting.” Jacob’s eyes filled with heat. “Yes, you were, but so was I. Do we have to plan out our whole future right this minute? Can’t we wait and see what the next few days bring?” Jacob looked at her hopefully. Eleanor looked into his eyes. What was she doing? Hadn’t she been through this before? Take whatever time you have with him. It’s a gift. She flung herself into his arms. He settled her on his lap. “Look at me,” he said, raising her chin with his finger. She saw a solemn face, an earnest face. “I love you, Eleanor Hennen,” he said and kissed her gently. “Whatever else 147

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happens, please remember that. I love you. You are everything to me.” She kissed him back, too filled with emotion to speak. Soon his kisses were not gentle. He rose with Eleanor in his arms and carried her to the bed. Five minutes later, there was a loud knock at the door. “Damn it, Jacob,” Luke yelled. “I can’t remember the last time I had a woman. If you don’t want me in the bed with you, shield, damn it. Now I have to go take another cold shower. If I get a water chap, I shall know who to come after.” Eleanor and Jacob laughed as they heard him stomp away.

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Chapter Twenty-One “Have you ever fired a gun?” Jacob and Eleanor stood behind one of the SUVs the others had traveled in. She looked in the back and saw a small arsenal. “I went deer hunting with Dad once. I had a rifle and fired it—sort of.” “What do you mean, sort of?” “Well, Dad wanted me to like hunting. He enjoyed it so much, he wanted to pass it on to his children. He was so happy when I finally agreed to go with him. But he left me up in a tree in a deer stand, covered in skunk oil, with the smallest rifle he owned. I was miserable. When a deer finally did wander by, I didn’t have the heart to shoot it. It was so beautiful and innocent. I didn’t want Dad to be disappointed, so I fired a shot to scare it away.” “What happened?” She looked at him sheepishly. “The recoil knocked me backward out of the tree. I broke my arm in the fall. It was the end of my hunting career.” Jacob smiled and shook his head. “So, not much experience with guns then?” “No, I’m afraid not. Mom wouldn’t let me near them after that.” He rummaged in the back of the SUV until he found a small hand gun and clip. With a few swift movements he loaded the gun and checked the chamber. “This is the smallest we have. It’ll have to do for you.” He held the gun out to her. Eleanor backed away. “I could never use that. It frightens me just to look at it. I could never aim it at a person and fire.” “You’d be surprised what you’ll do if someone you love is in danger. Take it. Get used to the weight.” “No, Jacob. I’d probably just shoot my own foot or something. I’m safer without it, really.” Jacob stood behind Eleanor and put the gun in her right hand. He took her wrists and moved them until her arms were fully extended in front of her. “Hold the gun with both hands like this,” he said as he positioned her hands for her. “Stand with your feet slightly apart.” Feeling like an idiot, she moved her feet apart. Who was she trying to kid here? A gun? Her? She trapped flies and spiders and released them outside. The only things she ever killed were mosquitoes, and that was a defense mechanism. “This is a firing stance,” Jacob said. “If they come at you, aim for the chest area, pull the trigger, and don’t stop shooting until your target falls, or the gun runs out of ammunition, whichever happens first. Do not hesitate. Do not think. It’s them or you.”

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She lowered the gun and turned to face him. “I still don’t think I‘ll be able to—” He cut her off. “There’s no way I’m letting you go in there unarmed. Don’t ask me to, love.” He took her face in his hands. “You have to keep yourself alive. Whatever it takes. Do you understand me?” The look in his eyes made Eleanor’s heart sing. He was so worried for her, so much in love with her. How could she say no to eyes like that? “All right, I’ll take the gun, but you’d better warn the others to watch out.” He showed her how to put on the safety. Once again, he rummaged in the back of the SUV. This time he came out with a shoulder holster. Helping her out of her jacket, he fastened the holster in place and put the gun in it. It felt very uncomfortable and the small gun was surprisingly heavy. Jacob backed away. “Practice a few draws.” For the next few minutes, Eleanor practiced getting the gun out and ready as fast as she could. With Jacob’s coaching, she progressed rapidly until she was comfortable with the process. When they were finished, Jacob took her by the shoulders. “Promise me you’ll do everything Christopher and James tell you.” “I promise.” “Promise me you won’t put yourself in danger. Not even for me. Promise me.” “I promise, but you have to promise me right back. Nothing can happen to you either. You have to come back to me.” He kissed her gently. “Safe travels, love,” he said against her hair. She hugged him as hard as she could. “Safe travels.” David and the others came up behind them. “It is time to go, you two. Aiden will drive the lead car, Luke the second and Michael will take the rear.” “Isn’t that just par for the course,” Mike muttered. David ignored him and continued. “Remember, no cell phones. Communicate by link only. You all know the rendezvous point. Let us proceed.” They moved en masse for the vehicles. Eleanor got into the first one with Jacob, Aiden and David. She held hands with Jacob in the backseat. The gun felt awkward against her body. She kept trying to adjust it. Finally, she gave up and switched her attention to the area they were driving through. They had headed north out of Seaside, keeping to the coast road. She kept gazing out to sea, but it was so dark she couldn’t see far. She caught a few glimpses of the majestic rock formations dotting the coast. She imagined they were monsters guarding the land from the sea demons. Suddenly, Aiden pulled the SUV inland, down a road that was no more than a path. He turned off the headlights, plunging them into darkness. “How can he see to drive?” Eleanor whispered to Jacob. “Don’t worry. David can see in the dark. He’s guiding Aiden.”

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The ride became extremely bumpy from then on. Tree branches whipped across the SUV, making eerie scratching noises, reminding Eleanor of a witch’s cackle. Deep ruts made them bounce up off the seat. They were steadily climbing. A few times Aiden had to back up and get a running start to make it up a hill. After fifteen minutes of steady climbing, the ground leveled off. Aiden pulled the SUV hard to the right and shut off the engine. “We’re here,” he said quietly. Jacob opened the door and jumped out. He held his hand out to Eleanor. She scooted over to the door and opened her mouth to ask a question. Before she could, Jacob put his finger over her lips. He moved the same finger to his own lips and shook his head, signaling her to keep quiet. The other two vehicles pulled in behind them. All of the men exited the vehicles soundlessly. They moved to form a circle. Eleanor and Mike were the only two not included. They stood outside the circle, looking in at the men’s faces. She could feel a small pulse of power coming from the men. As she watched, she realized they were silently communicating with each other. All heads turned toward David, and then all their faces turned to Sebastian. Some of the men nodded. She looked at Mike questioningly, but he shrugged his shoulders. David stepped into the center of the circle. Samuel came up to him and the two touched foreheads. Samuel backed away and Sebastian took his place and touched foreheads with David. One by one, the men filed up to David and touched him. When they were finished, Jacob came to her with Christopher and James behind him. He drew her close and kissed her. “I love you,” he whispered. Jacob took her hand and gave it to Christopher. The two men regarded each other for a long moment. Jacob took one more look at her, turned and walked away. Eleanor remained with Christopher, James and Mike. Everyone else disappeared. Christopher raised her hand to his lips for a kiss. He smiled at her kindly and motioned for her to follow him. Mike started to follow, but James put his hand on his chest and pointed back to the vehicles. Mike shook his head in disgust and turned back to wait. Christopher led the way into the woods. Eleanor was glad Jacob had insisted she dress warmly. Even with all the layers of insulation, she was cold. At least the coast wind couldn’t reach them here. It started to snow. As they neared the top of a hill, Christopher motioned them to stop. He continued alone to the top. After a few moments, he waved them over. When she reached him, she looked down at a house built into a cliff. How could people live in houses like this? One little earthquake and the whole thing would slide down the cliff into the sea. Huge girders anchored the house in place as it wrapped around the cliff. There were windows everywhere. She saw two smaller houses, almost hidden by the trees. There were lighted pathways between the houses. With the snow falling, Eleanor thought it looked like a 151

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small Christmas village. Christopher touched her shoulder to get her attention. He got down on his knees in the snow and signaled her to join him. Now that the time had come to link, Eleanor was terrified. Why had she volunteered for this? What had she been thinking? She was willingly going back into the dream world with Constantine, putting herself in his hands. Taking a deep breath, she knelt down next to Christopher and tried to push away a feeling of dread. As if he could sense her feelings, Christopher whispered, “Do not be afraid. I will not let Con hurt you. If I am right, he will be relieved to see us.” “I hope so,” she whispered. James moved to stand behind Christopher. He gave her an encouraging smile. She smiled back out of habit. Her mouth had gone dry and her heart beat so hard it hurt. At least she wasn’t cold anymore. Christopher lifted her chin to look into her eyes. “Calm, Eleanor, we must begin with calm.” Easy for him to say, she thought, but closed her eyes and started her deep breathing exercises. It surprised her when the breathing helped. Her racing heart slowed. Not to its normal speed, but it wasn’t pounding in her ears anymore. Amazing what years of practice could do. Christopher was still touching her chin. “Look at me,” he said in a seductive voice. She raised her eyes and the instant her gaze met his, the lens clicked. Everything else around her slipped away and there was only Christopher. His eyes, his lips, his beautiful face filled both her outward and inward vision. She smelled honey and something else. Rosemary, yes that was it. It was a wonderful, sweet, earthy smell. He used the link to push into her. She had been afraid he would feel like Constantine. Like everything else about Dyad brothers, she wouldn’t be able to tell their linked essence apart. At first touch, he did feel like Constantine. But where Constantine had been overpowering and arrogant, Christopher was gentle and reassuringly confident. He didn’t ram his way in, he glided through her defenses, calming them as he went. Because of this, she welcomed him in, dropping the last of her defenses and letting the link sink home. They were one. She couldn’t tell where she ended and Christopher began. It wasn’t like the links she’d experienced with the others. Christopher hadn’t pushed her psyche aside and taken over. It was as if he had asked permission, and once in, molded himself around her, making them both stronger in the process. She felt safe with him. Protected. Eleanor. She heard him call to her. It was amazing. She could both see him with her eyes and feel him in her head. His lips hadn’t moved. He was communicating with her telepathically.

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“Yes,” she said and heard an echo. Both her physical voice and her physic voice had answered him. He smiled at her and warmth spread through her. You do not have to speak with your mouth. Only think something and I will hear it. The first thing to pop into her head was embarrassing. She thought about how handsome Christopher was, how attracted she was to him, to all of them. She could feel herself blush. Why, thank you, Eleanor. We all think Jacob is a very lucky man. As soon as he said Jacob’s name, thoughts of their lovemaking flashed through her mind. Her embarrassment doubled and she tried to pull back from the link. No, do not pull away, he thought to her. What you and Jacob feel for each other is rare and beautiful. Something to be treasured and revered. No shame should enter into it. I will never understand how humans took the most precious gift given to us and attached shame to it. He cupped her face in his hands. Come back fully into the link. We must start our journey to Con. His hand caressed her face. At the same time, reassurance flooded through her. The embarrassment melted away and she embraced the link. Show me your link with Con. Concentrate on the difference you feel between him and me. What separates us from each other, in your mind? She thought of Christopher and how gentle and kind he felt. How he had made linking with him so easy and painless. She forced herself to think of Constantine. Night after night, he had invaded her dreams. No matter how hard she fought him, he always drew her to the same place. His bedroom. She remembered his arrogance and brutality as she had fought his hold on her. Fear flooded into her and she started to panic. She couldn’t do this. She wasn’t strong or brave enough to face him again. Maybe she could back out. They could find some other way, couldn’t they? I am here with you, Eleanor, thought Christopher. He will not harm you with me beside you. All is well. His thoughts soothed her, took away her fear. I see it now. I have the link, he said. Here it is, Eleanor. Can you lead the way to Con? She concentrated and suddenly, she could see it. It was a corridor in her mind. It started here with Christopher and led away to end in the dream bedroom. All she had to do was go down that corridor, and she would find Constantine waiting for her as she always had. In the bed with his face hidden by a pillow. Afraid, she hesitated. You must lead the way, Eleanor. It is your link with him, not mine. Do not worry, I will be right behind you. Trust me. Trust again. Why did it always come down to trust with these men? When she closed her eyes, the inner world came into sharper focus. The entrance to the corridor was clearer now, and she started toward it, following the link in her mind. Cold dread seeped into her as she found herself in Constantine’s bedroom. She turned to look behind her for Christopher, but he wasn’t there.

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“What do you want here?” Constantine said from behind her. In the dream, Eleanor whipped around to face him. He wasn’t in his usual place. The bed was empty. Looking around the room, she found him in an overstuffed chair next to a fireplace. The chair and fireplace were new to the dream world. His eyes were closed and his head rested against the chair. He looked tired, beaten, smaller somehow. He turned his head to her and opened his eyes. Stepping back, she braced for what always happened next. Soon he would come for her and the pleasure and pain would begin. He would start kissing and caressing her and when she did not respond in kind, take his frustration out on her. A few moments went by. He stared at her and she took a closer look at his eyes. The arrogance was gone, replaced with pain and sorrow. She almost felt pity for him. “What’s wrong with you?” she asked. “You find me alone, my dear. The first time I have not had any interference in over a month. I have no idea what has called them away, or how long it will last. If I were you, I would take advantage of my depleted state and either kill me or leave. I do not care which.” Hoping for some sign of Christopher, she looked behind her. She was alone with Constantine. What could have gone wrong? They had no plan for this. No way of getting away. Stall, she thought. Stall for time and hope Christopher shows up. “Who is interfering with you?” she asked. Constantine leaned forward in the chair and put his face in his hands. His voice came out muffled between his fingers. “A very bad man, Eleanor. He has shackled me in every way possible. I thought at first I was the master, the one in control. He has since convinced me otherwise.” He drew his hands away from his face and placed his elbows on his knees. In this position, he looked like a tired old man. He raised his head to look at her. “Did David send you to spy on me? I would not have thought Jacob would let him place you in danger. You reek of Jacob. Did he finally get around to having you? He always did take his time. Was he worth the wait?” A touch of his old arrogance crept back onto his face. “Are you his Balance, do you think? Will you complete him, and he, you? Do you think you will live happily ever after?” He laughed bitterly. “Come see me in fifteen years, or twenty. Come see me when you look like his mother, not his lover. Let us test the Balance then, eh?” Hearing her own fears voiced by Constantine made her want to run crying from the room, but she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Not him, not after everything he had done to her. Where was Christopher? “I’ll take whatever time Jacob and I have and treasure it. A day, a week, one year, ten years, I don’t care. It will be worth the pain after.” All the arrogance left his face, replaced by longing. “I believe you mean that.” He sighed deeply and settled back into the chair. “Lucky Jacob.”

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This wasn’t getting her anywhere. She had to get out of this room and try to find a way back to her physical body. In the past, she’d been asleep and gotten back by simply waking up. The one time she hadn’t been sleeping, David and Jacob had pulled her back. She had no idea how to do it on her own. “I was wrong, you know,” Constantine said quietly. “Wrong about everything. I have broken with everything that gave my life meaning. Turned my back on family and friends, all in the belief I was right. That I alone had the solution to all of our problems. A fool. That is what they will call me and they will be right.” He looked at her with such sadness, she almost went to him to offer comfort. “I would face them all. Face all the ridicule and blame, if I could. But I cannot. They will not let Simon near me. I fear they have harmed, maybe even killed him, and I am unable to find my way back without him or…Chris. My God, what have I done to Chris?” His voice faded away. “Nothing that can’t be righted,” Christopher said, coming to stand behind Eleanor. She sighed in relief and turned to look at him. He only had eyes for his brother. He looked at him with love and understanding. Curious, she turned to look at Constantine to see his reaction. Emotions flowed over his face. Within ten seconds Eleanor saw surprise, anger, shame and hope. He got shakily to his feet. “You took your sweet time getting here.” Christopher chuckled softly and moved in front of Eleanor. “You were always the faster, but I caught up in the end.” “Always,” Constantine said. The two brothers stood smiling at each other. The smile faded from Constantine’s face. He shook his head and took a tentative step toward them. His strength seemed to fail and he sank to his knees. Both of them started to cross to him, but he threw out his arm in warning. “No, Chris, you must not touch me. I am defiled, contaminated. I can feel the poison inside me. It is like nothing we have ever encountered before. His doctors developed it from my blood and re-injected it back into me. I can no longer channel the Balance I draw from the people he gives me. Not unless Meir is near, directing me. I fear I will pass this on to you.” Christopher knelt next to his brother. “Con, the only thing I truly fear is life without you. I have had a taste of it and I would prefer to travel on rather than continue in this bleak existence.” Constantine had tears in his eyes. “Chris, can you ever forgive me for doing this to us?” “There is no need of forgiveness between us. We are one. Where you go, so go I. If it is our time to travel on, we will face it together, as always.” He turned to Eleanor. “You must go now. I need you to carry a message to David and the others. I would call to them myself, but my link with Con is weak and I fear it will break if I try a secondary one.”

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“What do you need me to do?” she asked. “Where are you being held, Con?” Constantine sat back on his heels. “In the big house in a bedroom on the north side. It is always guarded by two men. They have guns and syringes filled with that vile drug.” Christopher took her hand. “Go back to Michael. Have him use his radio to contact Jacob. Tell him where Con is. We will wait to fully link until they are with him. I will need their help to cure him.” Eleanor got up and started for the door. She stopped and turned to them, embarrassed. “How do I get back? I mean, I don’t know how.” “Forgive me. I keep forgetting you are new to us. James will take you.” As soon as he said James’ name, he was there, offering her his hand. She took it and felt the world around her fading. The brothers dissolved into blackness. She started to panic. She couldn’t see. “Open your eyes,” James said. She opened her eyes and was back where she started. Christopher still knelt in front of her, his hands on her face. His eyes were open but she could tell they saw nothing. In his mind he was still with Constantine. James gently removed Christopher’s hands from her face. He helped her to stand. “Are you all right?” She felt shaky and disorientated. “Yeah, sure, I’m fine.” “Do you remember the way back to Michael?” “I think so.” “I would guide you back, but I must not leave them.” “I understand. I’m fine, really. I’ll find Mike and have him get in touch with Jacob.” “Remember, Eleanor, don’t go any nearer to the houses. Stay by Michael.” “Fine by me,” she said as she started back through the woods. The moon was rising and its light reflected off the snow. It was much easier to see her way now. As she retraced her steps, she let herself relax. Her part was over. She had managed to do what she promised. Christopher was with Constantine, she had shown him the way. Now, if only the others could accomplish what they set out to do, it would all be over. She and Alice could put this all behind them and focus on their future. No, don’t go there, she thought. She didn’t want to think of her future right now. Would Jacob be a part of her life? A future without him was too terrible to think about. Too painful. No, don’t think about it now. Just walk, put one foot in front of the other. She recognized a particularly gnarled oak tree and knew she was almost to the clearing where Mike waited. Halfway up the hill, she froze. Voices came from below. That couldn’t be good. No one had said anything about Mike having company. Doubling over, she made her way to the top of the hill, got down on her hands and

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knees and crawled the last few feet. As quietly as she could, she maneuvered until she could peek down at the clearing beneath her. Below, she saw three men in camouflage clothing. They each had a rifle with long scopes attached. Eleanor had never seen guns like that. For a full minute she stared at them, too frightened to look away. Someone groaned and her eyes were drawn to a body laid out between the men. She saw red hair sticking out from under a black knit hat. Oh God, no. They’ve caught Mike. How badly is he hurt? She couldn’t tell from her vantage point. Remembering the gun, she felt beneath her coat. It was still there. How had she gotten used to its bulk against her body so quickly? Her hand fumbled around until she was able to draw it out. It had seemed so big before, but against the three rifles, it looked like a child’s toy. She wanted to charge down into the clearing and demand they let Mike go. Looking at the gun again, she tried to remember what Jacob had taught her. Take the safety off, point at your target and don’t stop shooting until the target falls or you run out of ammo. Fine, but they’d never covered the multiple-target scenario. Maybe she could manage to bring one man down, but never three. One of the men spoke into a radio-phone. “Three vehicles on the south perimeter. Multiple trails leading off in three, possibly four groups. I estimate ten, maybe twelve troops. We have one prisoner, juvenile male, sixteen to nineteen, five-foot-five, onehundred-fifty pounds. Currently incapacitated from a blow to the head when he offered resistance. Over.” The other two men were inspecting the ground, following the footprints in the snow. One of them looked up the hill to where she hid. Time was running out. If she didn’t act soon they would find her cowering on the ground. A crackly voice came up from below. “Report back, unit four. Bring the prisoner with you.” Then in a louder, more urgent voice, “All units, all units, intruder alert. Repeat. Intruder alert. Implement repulsion plan beta. Shoot to kill. This is not a drill.” The “shoot to kill” decided her. She had to find the others and warn them. It didn’t sound like they were going to hurt Mike any more than he already was. At least not until they got him back to the house. Hopefully, by that time, she could tell the others and they could rescue him. Moving quickly, she slid backward down the hill. As soon as she felt safe, she got up and started to run to Christopher and James. She would start with them. They would know what to do next. Halfway back, she heard voices coming from her left and crouched down to listen. The voices didn’t sound familiar, but she wasn’t sure. She heard the crackle of a radio and the same commanding voice boomed out, “Tighten the perimeter, close in. Unit two take the left flank and move in from the north.” Definitely bad guys. With no other choice, she started moving away to the right, but that was the opposite direction from James and Christopher. It didn’t matter. Maybe she could circle back later. The important thing was not to get caught.

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In the next ten minutes, Eleanor was forced to change direction three times. After the third time, she realized she was being herded toward the houses. She kept from panicking by reminding herself it was the way she wanted to go anyway. She was still in control. At least three groups of men followed her, all closing in on the houses. But she was in front of them, and with any luck, could reach the others before them. Christopher’s message had to get through. Keeping low to the ground, she ran from tree to tree, shadow to shadow. The tree line ended abruptly, providing her a good view of the estate. The distance between the first house and the trees seemed enormous. No cover. Her black clothes would stick out against the white snow. Anyone even glancing this way would see her. There had to be a better way. She looked over the entire complex again. The smaller house on the right was closest to the tree line. There was shade on that side for cover, if she could get there before the moon changed position. As fast as she could, she circled around until she was as close to the house as possible. Hesitating, she worked up the nerve to leave the safety of the trees. A scream shattered the quiet. Eleanor was so startled she almost screamed herself. It came from the direction of the big house. It was a man’s scream, but all the more frightening because she couldn’t remember ever hearing a man scream in terror. Another scream followed. It was the impetus she needed to get her feet moving down the hill. As she ran, she crouched low. If anyone saw her, maybe they would think she was an animal. Yeah, right. The big bad military-looking men with guns will mistake me for a large dog. She could feel guns targeting her back. Imagining men squinting through their scopes at her head caused panic to flood in and she started running full out. When she finally reached the house, she had the urge to kiss the wall. Like a little kid who had reached goal. Nothing bad could happen to you if you were touching goal. She tried to open a window but it was locked. What now? Her whole plan had been to get to the houses before the men behind her. Now that she was here, she had no idea how to find the others, or even how to get into this stupid house. Flattening against the wall, she started to walk around the house. The new plan was to try every door and window to see if she could get in. It that didn’t work, she’d come up with yet another plan. At the corner of the house, she stopped. Using a technique she’d learned from countless 007 movies, she peeked around to check the next side of the house. About ten feet away, a screen door stood open, swinging back and forth in the wind. Inching up to it, she looked inside. The inside door was open a crack as well. She’d found her way in. Now that she had the very thing she’d been looking for, she didn’t know if she was better off, or worse. Was it a trap? Had the bad guys left it open to lure them in? Did it matter? As quietly as she could, she eased the heavy door open enough to squeeze through. 158

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She was in a back entryway. If she went straight ahead, she would go down carpeted stairs to a basement. To the right was a kitchen. The basement looked cold and scary. The kitchen looked warm and inviting. The kitchen it is. Nothing bad ever happened in a kitchen, right? As frightened and preoccupied as she was, she took a moment to marvel at the state-of-the-art appliances and cabinets. The island in the center of the room was bigger than the entire kitchen in her old apartment. Do bad guys cook? she wondered. Do they swing those rifles over their backs and start peeling potatoes? Do they have contests for the best spaghetti sauce? For the life of her, she couldn’t imagine what dinner with the minions of evil would be like. Pass the salt or I’ll gut you like I did this chicken. She couldn’t help herself. She had to know. Crossing the room, she opened the stainless steel refrigerator, bigger than her first car, for a peek. Beer, beer and oh yes, more beer. And not the good stuff, either. This was the brand that Bobby said made you fart like an Evinrude motor on full throttle. No wonder these guys were torturing people. They were bloated. Her gaze wondered over the shelves. The bottom was lined with test tubes in neat rows, all standing in plastic eight packs. She picked one up to study it. The liquid inside was red and thick. The label said Dyad inhibitor 1919. What was this? Were there really 1918 other versions? She put it in her pocket and closed the door. When she turned back into the room, she let out a frightened squeak. She wasn’t alone. It was one of the old people, a woman leaning heavily on a cane. Like the others, she was stooped over, her skin hanging off her bones. Eleanor saw recognition in her eyes. “Oh,” she rasped. “It’s you. How on earth did you get here?” In spite of the throaty rasp, Eleanor recognized the voice. “Elsbeth Cummings,” she said in disbelief. “Is that you?” Elsbeth let out a disgusted snort. “Don’t tell me you don’t recognize me. I am the classically beautiful Elsbeth Cummings. All the magazines say so. I only have to crook my finger at a man and he’s eating out of my hand. I have money and power and fame and—” She stopped suddenly and burst into tears. Her crying ended in a wail. “Look what he has done to me. He promised me power. He promised me eternal youth. I did everything he asked and see how he has used me.” Her withered hands rose to her face, touching it in horror. “I’m ruined, he has ruined me!” “Who did this to you?” Eleanor asked, edging toward the door. “Meir,” she spat. “He doubled-crossed me. He told me we were partners, and when he had what he wanted, he turned on me.” Eleanor stopped inching her way to the door, her curiosity piqued. “I don’t understand. I thought Constantine—”

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Elsbeth waved her cane at Eleanor, narrowly missing her head. “Constantine, that fool. He wanted to end it all. After your visit to the mansion, he started having second thoughts. He did not want to continue without Christopher.” Her voice took on an exaggerated sing-song. “If Christopher thinks I’m wrong, I will have to reconsider. I cannot do this without my brother.” Her voice changed back to its normal rasp. “The idiot. The weak fool. He wanted to go to him. To go back to Christopher.” Eleanor took a step toward her. “But if Constantine wanted to stop, how did you end up this way?” “I told you, you stupid slut. Meir. He said we could control Constantine, make him do what we wanted, but he needed my help to trick the fool long enough to carry out his plan. And I did it. I did everything he told me to do. As soon as he had Constantine under his control, he didn’t need me anymore. He had Constantine use me up, suck me dry. Oh God.” She started wailing again. Eleanor did not like this woman. She was a spoiled, rich, everything-on-a-platter nightmare, but she couldn’t help feeling sorry for her. Without her beauty, she had nothing, was nothing. “Why don’t you leave? I can help you.” “And go where? I can’t go anywhere looking like this. Everyone will see me, everyone will know. They’ll look at me with pity and revulsion. No, I have to stay hidden away. I have to.” The woman has lost her mind, Eleanor thought. She started inching to the door again. “Well, I’m sorry this happened to you, Elsbeth, but I have to go.” Elsbeth let out a low laugh. “You’re not going anywhere.” “Why not? I’ve never done anything to you. Why not pretend we never saw each other?” Elsbeth advanced on her. “Do you think I’m stupid? Do you think I’ve lost my wits, along with my beauty? You’re here with the others to rescue Damien. I heard the guards on the radio. You haven’t got a chance. Meir has a small army here. They’ll be all over you in a matter of minutes.” Shaking her cane in Eleanor’s face, she said, “No, I’m going to give you to Meir. Maybe as a reward, he’ll make Constantine take your youth and give it to me.” Elsbeth drew her cane back and took a swing at Eleanor’s head. Ducking, Eleanor felt the cane whoosh over her, missing her by inches. The momentum from the swing sent Elsbeth whirling across the kitchen. She stumbled and hit her head on the center island. After a few wobbles, she went down. There was a sickening crack as her head hit the floor. Eleanor started for her but stopped when she heard a cry of pain coming from the basement. It sounded like Simon’s voice. Deciding Simon was more important than Elsbeth, she changed direction for the stairs and fumbled in her jacket for the gun. Clumsily, she pointed the gun ahead of her and ran down the stairs.

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Chapter Twenty-Two Suddenly, arms were holding her tightly. Her gun arm was thrust over her head and a hand clamped over her mouth. Before terror could set in, she saw Luke and Emil looking at her with surprised expressions. The arms holding her loosened and she turned to look at her captor. It was Samuel or Sebastian, she couldn’t tell which. It was his hand over her mouth. He put a finger to his lips, signaling her to keep quiet. She nodded as he took his hand away and moved her behind him. Luke made some hand signals she didn’t understand. The other twin came from behind her to stand beside his brother. He turned to her and motioned her to stay put. Drawing their guns, Luke and Emil moved to flank a doorway on the right. The twins went to the doorway. They looked at each other for a moment and Eleanor could feel the power building between them. They turned and nodded to their partners, opened the door and casually walked through. Luke and Emil rushed in behind them. Eleanor heard a great commotion. Shouts and screams, bangs and thuds, but no gunshots. It was over in about ten seconds, and then, nothing. No sound at all. With a shaking hand, she raised her gun and went to the door. She stood in the doorway, gaping. Three men in military dress sprawled on the floor, unconscious. Luke and Emil were collecting the downed men’s guns. The twins were helping Simon out of wrist shackles. He had been chained to the wall. There wasn’t a single patch of skin on him that looked normal. He had cuts, burns and bruises everywhere. Because of this, she didn’t realize at first he was naked. Catching herself looking at his private parts, she turned away from him and noticed the gun still in her hand. “I think you’ll find that works better if you take the safety off,” Luke said, coming to her. “But thanks for the backup.” He winked at her. Simon groaned as they lowered him to the ground. “Con,” he croaked. “Save Con, I think they did something terrible to him. They’ve been bragging about it, but they wouldn’t tell me what they did to him.” “Easy, Simon,” one of the twins said. “Christopher will take care of Constantine.” “Chris is here? Thank God, thank God,” he said and started coughing. “How bad is he, Samuel?” Emil asked. Samuel shook his head. “Two broken ribs, punctured lung, cracked jaw and they took all of his fingernails. He is in a great deal of pain and cannot travel far. We will have to heal him before we move on.” “Agreed,” Sebastian said. 161

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The four of them knelt in a circle around Simon. Eleanor watched as the brothers linked and grew their power. On some invisible cue, Luke and Emil touched their partners and joined the link. The twins touched Simon, one his head, the other his feet. Once again, she stood in awe as she watched Simon’s body heal. Burns disappeared, cuts closed themselves and his fingernails grew. It was like something out of a sci-fi movie. She’d seen it twice now and still didn’t believe it. Something pushed her hard and she stumbled into the men. Turnings, she saw four armed men enter the room with rifles pointed at them. “Drop the gun,” one of the men said. It took a moment for Eleanor to realize he was talking to her. She still had her gun in her hand. Stiff with fear, she looked at Luke. He nodded, so she let the gun fall from her fingers. The twins, Luke and Emil stood and faced the gunmen. Eleanor felt hands pull her back. Simon took her place in the line of men. “Put your hands on your heads and kneel down,” the same armed man said. Was it her imagination, or did he sound frightened? “No, I don’t think we’ll do that,” Simon said quietly. The men shifted uneasily, but their leader barked back, “Down now, or we open fire. Our orders are shoot to kill.” “Then follow your orders. You’re very good at that, aren’t you, Duane?” Duane seemed to hesitate. Simon smiled at him and Duane’s eyes narrowed. “Have it your way, you freak.” They opened fire. Eleanor screamed and threw her arms over her head. When nothing happened, she looked out from between her arms. The bullets were hanging in the air halfway between the two groups of men. “What the fuck?” the smallest man said. Another man bolted out the door. “Again,” Duane said. The three remaining men fired another round. The second round of bullets joined the others in midair. “Enough,” one of the twins said. The bullets turned and backed the three uniformed men up against the wall. Simon moved in front of them. “Drop your guns, or I will let them drive the bullets into your brains.” Three rifles dropped to the floor. Simon went to Duane and dragged him over to the chains. He clamped a chain around his wrist. “I told you I would see you in these.” Duane pulled against his chain. “You will never get away,” he shouted at the room. “They know you’re here. Our men are closing in all around you. You haven’t got a chance.” Simon finished locking Duane’s second wrist into the chain. “I need you to listen

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carefully to me, Duane. I’m trying to forget what you’ve done to me over the past two months. Maybe my friends here will stop me from doing to you what you did to me, maybe, but I wouldn’t count on it.” The twins had gone to the remaining men. At their touch, the men sagged to the ground, unconscious. Eleanor staggered to the center of the room. “You could have told me about the bullet thing. How come I have to keep discovering things as I go? Isn’t there a Dyad manual or something? Do you guys want me to have a heart attack, or what?” She reached down and recovered her gun. Simon stripped one of the unconscious men of his clothes. Luke and Emil gathered up guns. No one paid any attention to her. “We must move on,” Samuel said. “Wait,” she said. “You have to listen to me. They have Mike, Christopher needs your help and there are men in the woods closing in on us.” All the men turned to face her. Luke broke the silence. “Well, Eleanor, you’ve been a busy girl. Please, start from the beginning and tell us what you’ve been up to.” She quickly recounted her story. “So you see, you have to get to Constantine. He is very sick.” “These men are devils,” Simon said as he pulled on pants. “If this isn’t enough to release us from our oath, I don’t know what is. The world would be better without these animals.” Samuel took him gently by the shoulders. “We do not break our oath, Simon. I know you have been ill-used and not just by these men. By Constantine as well. Would you add foresworn oaths to these sad events?” Simon met his gaze for a moment and then looked down. “No, I would not.” Samuel hugged him, holding him as if he were a small child who needed comfort. Eleanor looked at the two of them. She had never seen grown men touch like that. Now that she thought about it, these men were always touching each other. In her world, men were afraid to touch in public. They would be thought odd or labeled gay. That was sad, because this was beautiful. “Come,” Samuel said, breaking the hug. “We must make our way to the big house. Damien is in the basement and Constantine is in an upstairs bedroom. Let us see which one chance leads us to first.” Luke came over to Eleanor. “Stay with me, always behind me. Never cross my line of fire.” “Okay.” “And holster that gun. I’m more nervous about you shooting me by mistake than these goons getting off a lucky shot.”

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“Very funny,” she said, but she holstered her gun. She was a little nervous about it too. The holster was the safest place for it. Simon, fully dressed now, led the way up the stairs and out the door. When he reached the corner of the house, he waited for the others to catch up. Eleanor looked toward the largest house. The path they had to travel had no cover. It was well-lit, open ground. The men from the woods had to have closed in by now. If they took one step out there, twenty guns would open fire. The twins motioned to Simon and he moved to stand between them. Suddenly they were gone. Disappeared. Eleanor gasped and Luke put his hand over her mouth. “Don’t worry,” he whispered in her ear. The twins appeared out of nowhere and surrounded Emil, and poof, they disappeared. Eleanor looked questioningly at Luke. Before he could answer, the twins were back again. They put their arms around Eleanor. She tensed and tried to pull away. Samuel leaned down to whisper in her ear, “We are going to take you to the house. We will move too fast for their eyes to see. No harm will come to you.” He leaned back and looked at her, waiting for approval. Exasperated, she looked at both of them. Fine, she thought, but if I ever get out of this, someone is going to teach me Dyad 101. Having no other choice, she nodded her agreement to Samuel. Their grip tightened around her waist and she was lifted off the ground. The next second, she was lowered to the ground, but she was not where she had been. Emil was pulling her out of the twins’ arms and moving her into the big house. It surprised her. She had expected to feel something, a wind rushing or the ground moving. Something that gave an indication of movement. But there had been nothing. One second she was next to Luke and the next, Emil. “Emil,” she whispered. “If they can do that trick, why hasn’t Damien gotten away?” Emil moved closer to her to whisper in her ear. “The Dyad has to be together. One of them alone cannot draw enough power from the Balance to speed walk.” “Is that what it’s called? Speed walking?” He nodded and motioned her farther into the house as Luke and Samuel came through the door. Samuel stopped suddenly and said, “Damien is close and David is with him. They are channeling, but I cannot make out how they are using the power.” They heard muffled shouts coming from farther inside the house. Simon led the way toward the noise with the others following behind him. Eleanor and Luke brought up the rear. They went down a flight of steps to an open area. She had to peek around Luke to see what was going on. David and Damien stood on the far side of the room. In front of them, a man hung upside down in midair hurling obscenities at them. It took a moment for her to place him. It was Carl, the head man who’d kidnapped and tortured Damien.

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She looked around the rest of the room. Jacob and Aiden were busy tying up the unconscious guards. She winced when she saw syringes embedded in each guard’s butt. They must have tried to shoot David or Damien with the drug Constantine was talking about. “Well, who have we here?” Luke said, going to stand under the dangling man. “This is Carl,” Damien said. “He likes hitting things. In fact, I have just thought of the perfect place for him.” Damien went into a room behind them. Carl levitated after him. The rest of them followed. Another set of wrist chains hung on the wall. Damien took one of the chains and fastened it around Carl’s wrist. Carl sank to the ground but he quickly got his feet under him. He rushed at Damien, but the chain halted him. Damien went to him and handed him a metal bar. Carl raised it to strike him, but he ran into an invisible barrier. He tried again to strike Damien, this time harder, but was again prevented by some unseen force. Damien shook his head and sighed. “I thought this would make you content, Carl. You may use the metal bar to hit your chains until either the chain breaks or you tire of hitting it.” Carl surged at him again, the effort making his face go red. “As fascinating as that might be to watch, I am afraid we have other places we must go. You will, I am sure, excuse us. Come, gentlemen, we have overstayed our welcome.” “You-you,” Carl spat. “You freak. Faggots, every one of you. Your race is dead, do you hear me? Now that we know about you, we won’t stop until every last one of you is dead.” Simon walked up and decked him. Carl went flying backward and ended in a heap on the floor. Simon turned and looked at them. “Sorry,” he said and shrugged. Luke and Aiden burst out laughing. Aiden went to him and clapped him on the back. “It’s good to see you, Simon. I see you haven’t lost any of your fire.” “Sound punch,” Luke said, still laughing. “Thanks, I was getting tired of him. Is there anyone left for me to pound?” Jacob went over to Eleanor. “Why aren’t you with Mike where you’re supposed to be? Don’t you ever listen to what I tell you? I thought the plan was for you to stay with Mike and yet here you are, in the thick of things.” He took her by the shoulders. “Where’s your gun? Don’t tell me you left it behind.” She was about to give him a sharp retort when Luke spoke. “Eleanor has come through great peril to bear a message from Chris.” Damien came up to them, smiling. “Eleanor, my dear girl. With all the commotion, I 165

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did not see you there. You never cease to amaze me. Thank you for coming to my rescue.” He kissed her hand. David came to stand beside his brother. She took a good look at the two of them. It was just as it had been with Sebastian and Samuel. If she hadn’t known what David was wearing, she would have been unable to tell them apart. They were exactly the same. They were also completely healed. “What is the message?” David asked. For the second time, Eleanor told her story. When she was finished, Damien said, “How badly was Michael hurt?” “I couldn’t tell. I heard him moan and I think he was unconscious. The men had orders to bring him back to the houses. They must be here by now. We should find him, right away. Can you…ah…sense where he is?” Damien’s eyes lost their focus for a moment. “No, I cannot,” he said quietly. “What does that mean?” she asked uneasily. Damien shrugged and shook his head. The men started moving to the door. Jacob came to her. “I’m sorry, love. I shouldn’t have been angry with you.” “What does Damien not being able to sense Mike mean?” “It means he’s either deeply unconscious or…” “Or,” she prompted. “Or, he’s dead,” he finished. “No,” she said emphatically. “He was alive when they took him. Surely they would keep him that way. For bait, if nothing else.” Jacob put his arm around her. “I hope you’re right, but you know Mike. Can you imagine him letting them use him that way?” A sinking feeling settled in her stomach as she realized the implications of what Jacob said. “Well, maybe he’s still unconscious from when they attacked him in the first place. He did look pretty out of it when I left.” “Jacob, Eleanor, come,” Damien called from the other room. As they entered the room, she saw the others straightening up. They were such a tidy race. Luke, Aiden and Emil were checking their weapons. The Dyads moved the unconscious men to one side of the room, arranging them in a neat row. They touched each of them on the forehead, sending them into a deeper sleep. “There,” David said. “That should hold them for a few hours.” He turned to Eleanor. “Did you say they made this drug from Con’s blood?” “Yes. He said they took his blood, altered it and re-injected it.” “Chris is correct, then,” Sebastian said. “It will take all of us working together to counteract a blood-born infection. Especially if it’s mutated on a cellular level.” “Best get to it then,” Samuel said. He led the way up the stairs and the others fell in behind him, with Eleanor again in the rear. They seemed to know exactly where they 166

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were going. She guessed being this close, they could sense Constantine. At the top of the second set of stairs, they stopped. Samuel and Sebastian took a moment to build their power. Eleanor felt it rippling against her skin. They turned and, shoulder to shoulder, headed down the hall, with their partners closely following. In the back, Eleanor couldn’t see what was happening, but she heard shouts and rapid gunshots, followed by more shouting and then, silence. Hurrying to the end of the hall, she saw two men on the floor with spent bullet casings all around them. In addition to the now familiar automatic rifles that everyone around here seemed to carry, they also were equipped with tranquilizer guns. She guessed what they were because Samuel was pulling a dart out of one of the guns. He carefully broke it open and smelled it. “This is different from what they were using to guard Damien. I smell Con, but perverted, twisted into something vile.” He yanked his nose away and took a deep breath of fresh air. David stepped up and took a whiff. “Gods,” he snarled and spit. “Poor Con, to have that running through his body.” Eleanor remembered the vial in her pocket. “Here, look at this. Can you tell if it’s the same stuff?” She passed the vial to David. David opened it and took a reluctant whiff. “Yes, it is the same twisted blood. Where did you find it?” “I forgot to tell you, there’s a whole fridge full of it in the other house.” David looked at the others. “It seems we have the beginning of another war. Will it never change?” He turned back to Eleanor. “We will destroy it later. Let us proceed.” Emil tried the door but it was locked. Sebastian moved him aside and placed his palm on the door. They heard a loud click and the double doors opened inward. These guys are really handy to have around, Eleanor thought. Every five minutes she found out some new incredible ability. What couldn’t they do? Simon pushed his way past the others to enter first. He paused in the doorway and looked around the room. She saw him do a double take and then rush in. Everyone followed. Eleanor held back by the door. Looking around, she was overcome by a sense of déjà vu. Goose bumps broke out on her skin. The room was so like her dream she got the pre-panic feeling she always experienced when she first entered it. It even smelled the same. Constantine was in the chair by the fireplace. At least she thought it was Constantine. The Dyads had surrounded him, blocking her view. “Dear God,” David said. It must be bad, Eleanor thought, if the horrified expression on the men’s faces was any indication. Damien moved slightly and she got her first look at Constantine.

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Chapter Twenty-Three He sat as he had been during her last encounter with him, his arms hanging limply off the chair, his head resting against the chair back. She took a closer look and cried out before she could stop herself. Constantine’s beautiful lion’s mane of golden hair had turned a dull gray. His cheeks and eye sockets had sunken in. Jowls hung down below his chin. He looked like the old people from the night of the party. Any animosity she was harboring for him washed away, replaced by pity. This could not possibly be the same man who had filled the room with his confidence and presence three months ago. Simon knelt in front of him. He reached out to touch him, but Damien grabbed his wrist. “No, Simon, not until we are ready.” Samuel held his hands over Constantine’s head. He said a few clipped words in German. “English, please,” Aiden said. “I can’t concentrate enough right now to translate.” Samuel turned to him. “He is close to traveling on. Chris is holding him to this plane, but they both weaken. I fear we are too late to save them.” Simon put his face in his hands. “No!” he wailed. Jacob moved and put his hand on Simon’s shoulder, but it was to Samuel he spoke. “We must try. No matter what Con has done, there’s still Chris to think of. We must not lose them.” “I agree, we must try,” Damien said, coming forward. “They have always been the strongest of us. With our help, Chris will pull them out.” Samuel nodded. “We must begin now. Put him on the table.” Jacob and Aiden moved a long rectangular table to the center of the room. Using his clothes to lift him, they moved Constantine and laid him on the table. Jacob went to Eleanor and put his arm around her waist. Damien came to them. “We are going to attempt to link with Chris and heal Con,” Damien said. “Whatever you may see or feel, do not touch any of us once we have started. We will be drawing heavily on the Balance, and to the untrained, it can be dangerous.” Eleanor looked at Jacob in alarm. “Will you be in danger?” Jacob kissed her hair. “No, but I trained a long time to be able to handle that much power.” “What would happen if I tried?” Damien smiled at her. “You always have to know. It is a trait with you. You cannot 168

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stand unanswered questions. What a trial you must have been to your parents.” His smile faded as he continued. “That much power running through your body without the proper channeling builds until it explodes inward. You are left an empty shell. A body without a brain or soul. Is that a sufficient deterrent, or do we have to go get the wrist shackles?” She held her hands up in surrender. “No, no. I got it. No touching, I promise.” “I will take you at your word.” Damien leaned in to her. “No shackles, then. I must admit to a certain disappointment.” His eyes twinkled down at her. He turned and went back to the others surrounding Constantine. Jacob started to pull away from her. She grabbed his arms. “Are you sure you’ll be all right?” she asked, pulling him closer. He drew her into his arms for a long hug. “I’ll be fine. Please take Damien’s warning to heart. Nothing must ever happen to you.” He drew back and looked into her eyes, and there it was. She had waited all her life for a man to look at her like this. The way her father had looked at her mother. The way Bobby looked at Alice. Her heart felt so full, she thought it would burst. He loved her, truly loved her. You couldn’t fake a look like that. Here she was, standing in a strange house with non-humans all around her, surrounded by scary men with guns who wanted to kill them and she was happier than she had ever been in her life. Go figure. Jacob leaned in and kissed her forehead. “We must begin,” Samuel cautioned. “We are out of time.” With the exception of Emil, who remained by the door to guard it, the men gathered around Constantine’s wasted body. Sebastian was at his head, Samuel his feet, Damien and David stood between them at Constantine’s sides. Their partners took positions behind them. Simon was standing in for Emil as Samuel’s partner. Eleanor felt power start to build as Damien and David raised their left hands over Constantine’s body. She felt the power grow as the two brothers touched hands, one on top of the other. Feeling uncomfortable, she took a step back. The power ran over her body in waves, pushing her away from the circle of men. Samuel and Sebastian raised their left hands and the power intensified as they touched a few inches above Damien and David’s hands. The two sets of brothers brought their joined hands closer to each other. The power grew proportionately until at last the two pairs touched. She was forced back even farther by the largest wave of power yet. “They’re linked now,” Emil said, making her jump in surprise. Somehow she’d backed all the way to the door. Even at this distance, the power made her skin tingle as if insects were walking all over her. As one, the partners lifted their left hands to their Dyad’s shoulder. A small sigh escaped Emil as his attention was divided between guarding the door and watching the

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men. “They have found Chris and James and established the link. Constantine is still with Chris. Your link held, Eleanor.” She was absurdly proud of herself for a moment until she remembered she’d had no idea how to link and it was really all Christopher’s doing. “They’re ready,” Emil whispered, as if afraid to distract them. The Dyad’s right hands rose. They met briefly in the center but broke away almost at once to hover over different parts of Constantine’s body. Sebastian over his forehead, Damien, his mouth, David, his heart and Samuel over his groin. “The four Balance points,” Emil explained. “Thought, speech, love and lust.” The Dyads lowered their hands and touched Constantine. A collective gasp came from the men, including Emil. Constantine’s body arched off the table, his back at an impossible angle. His eyes flew open and he cried out, “Chris, save yourself. Let me go.” As if he couldn’t help himself, Emil took a step away from the door. “The poison has worked its way into every cell of his body. This is very bad. It is draining them just to be in contact with it.” Sweat broke out on the human partner’s brows. She looked at Jacob. He was struggling, breathing heavily, his face concentrating on the battle waging against the drug. She wanted to go to him and give him whatever aid she could. It was hard to stand back and do nothing. She started to pace, her body moving quickly to provide some outlet for the tension and anxiety she felt. The men started to hum. First the Dyads, then the partners. Eight voices. It was beautiful, she decided. The harmony of their voices calmed her and she stopped pacing. “What’s happening now?” she asked Emil. “They’re drawing heavily on the Balance. Others have linked with them from far off and are assisting.” He turned to her, looking frightened. “It doesn’t seem to be working.” Simon started to sag. His knees were giving out on him. He was valiantly struggling to keep his feet under him. His hand started to lose its grip on Samuel’s shoulder. Emil shook his head. “He is still weakened from his ordeal. The link is faltering.” “Emil,” Simon gasped. “I must go to them and shore up Simon’s link,” Emil said. He thrust his rifle in her hands. “You must guard us, Eleanor.” She stepped away from him, horrified. “Oh, no, I can’t. I’m no good with guns.” She held the rifle out to him. Emil shook her by the shoulders. “You must. If the link is not closed quickly, they all will be lost. Stand by the door and shoot anyone who comes down the hall.” He moved her into position and forced her to her knees. “But—” she started. 170

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“No time,” he said as he went to Simon. He touched Simon and Samuel at the same time. Immediately, Simon straightened as strength seemed to flood back into him. The humming grew stronger and she felt another wave of power rush over her. Feeling more alone than she’d ever been in her life, she turned her attention to the door. Exposing as little of her head as possible, she peeked around the door to look down the hall. It was empty, quiet. Drawing her head back into the room, she looked down at the rifle in her hand. She wanted to throw it away. How on earth had she gotten in this situation? Would she really be able to point this at a human and fire? End a life? But what was the alternative? These people had tortured Simon and Damien. They had poisoned Constantine. God knows what they had done to Mike. They would kill her to get to the Dyads. Her gaze moved to Jacob. They would kill him. Jacob would try to protect Damien and they would kill him. She thought of him lying dead in her arms, gone from her forever. A cold calm swept over her. Yes, she thought, she could point this gun and shoot. Damn right she could. With renewed determination, she looked around the room. A large mirror hung on the far wall. Shouldering her gun, she hurried to it and lifted it off the wall. With a strength that surprised her, she moved the mirror out into the hallway and positioned it so she could see the length of the hall without exposing her head. Moving back into the room, she hunkered down with the rifle at the ready, daring anyone to step into view. She didn’t have to wait long. In the mirror, a man came into view. He crawled down the hall, his long rifle in front of him. Taking a deep breath, she inched her gun around the corner and fired. The recoil sent her sprawling back as the gun flew out of her hands and landed a few feet away. Scrambling to grab it, she repositioned herself and looked in the mirror expecting to see the crawling man halfway down the hall, but no one was there. A moan from the group behind her took her attention off the mirror. Looking back into the room, she saw Constantine levitating off the table. His body shook, his head thrashed back and forth. For just a second his eyes met hers. There was such pain and anguish. Her heart went out to him in his struggle. “Don’t give up. Please, Constantine,” she pitched her voice to be heard over the humming. “They’re all counting on you. Please, try.” He screamed and she looked away. It was too painful to watch. Besides, she should be watching the door. Movement in the mirror brought her to full attention. Something rolled down the hall, smoking. It took her a moment to realize what it was and it was almost too late to act. Tear gas. Quickly slamming the door, she locked it and ran to the bed. Dragging the heavy spread over to the door, she stuffed it into the cracks. Smoke was starting to waft up as she jammed the last crack with the spread. A tall dresser stood to the right of the door. Getting behind it, she used her legs as leverage and pushed until it toppled over in front of the door. This would buy her some

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time, but if Jacob and the others didn’t finish soon, they were done for. She swung the rifle back into position and waited. Now that she was farther in the room and closer to the Dyads, the effect from the power made her skin tingle so badly she wanted to scream. How could they stand it? It felt like she was being electrocuted. Suddenly, it stopped. She sighed in relief, turning to see what was happening. Constantine hovered above the men’s heads. All the Dyads and their partners had their arms stretched up toward him, touching him only with their fingertips. He started to glow, as if his body had a halo. “Put the gun down, or I’ll kill the boy.” Jumping, she whirled to see Mike, held with a gun to his head by a man looking at her with cold deadly eyes. They’d come out of what she’d assumed was a bathroom. That’s what it had been in her dream. Stupid, stupid. “Don’t you do it, Ellie,” Mike said. The man ground his gun into Mike’s temple. Mike let out a groan and fell to his knees. “Shoot him, Ellie. He’ll kill me, anyway. Shoot.” The rifle felt like it weighed a ton as she raised it. Her arms shook so badly the gun barrel bobbed. “Let him go,” she managed to squeak out. The man looked at her and sneered. “I promise you, unless you throw your gun down I will put a bullet in his brain.” He clicked the trigger back to fire. “Decide,” he yelled. She dropped the rifle. “Smart girl.” He eased up on the trigger. “Let him go. He’s only a boy. He can’t hurt you.” “Only a boy. How do I know that? This boy could be hundreds of years old. This boy could have helped build the pyramids.” Trying to reason with him, she said, “Look at him. He’s a boy. He grew up in Chicago. Michael is his name. He’s only been with them a few years. Please, don’t hurt him.” When she started toward them he stopped her by swinging his gun to her face. He looked down at Mike, studying him. She was surprised when he stepped away and said, “Go to him, but no tricks.” Eleanor ran to Mike, kneeling down to cradle him in her arms. She started checking him for wounds. Mike looked up at her. His eyes were full of fear and something else— determination. He stopped her hands as they trailed over his body. “I’m all right,” he whispered. “What are they doing?” the man asked. He stood transfixed, watching the men still in their loose circle with Constantine in the air above them.

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“Don’t tell him anything,” Mike whispered. He leaned into her, putting his lips close to her ear. “We have to stall for time.” Eleanor took his lead. She stood up and faced the man, his gun still pointed at her. “Who are you? Why have you done this to them?” The man turned his attention away from the men for just a second to glance at her. As if he couldn’t help himself, his focus turned back to the group. “I am Quentin Meir,” he said, as if she should already know. “These men have something I want.” “You’re lying. Quentin Meir is in his sixties. You can’t be more than thirty-five.” He turned and gave her his full attention. His look said he thought she was an idiot. “Don’t tell me you’ve been around them and don’t know what they can do? The miracle they can bestow.” A sharp blow hit the door, rocking the dresser wedged against it. “Ah, the cavalry,” Meir said, smiling cruelly at her. She had to think of something. If those men got through the door, it was all over. They would open fire. The Dyads were too far into the healing process to stop them. Not one of them had so much as looked over since Mike and Meir entered the room. “It won’t last, you know,” she said, grabbing at the first thing to enter her mind. “Your newfound youth. It doesn’t last.” Meir looked at her suspiciously as another blow rocked the door. “What do you mean, it doesn’t last? I’ve been like this for two months.” As she crossed her arms over her chest her heart sped up when she felt her handgun still in its holster underneath her coat. If only she could use it. “You have to stay close to the Dyad who gave you the Balance. They have to keep shooting the power into you or, well, I guess you saw what happens. You revert back but not to the age you were. Didn’t you see those ancient people in Minnesota?” His eyes narrowed as he paused, weighing her words. “That’s not what that pompous fool Constantine told me. Once he gave me back my youth, he said I would age naturally.” She forced a laugh. “You believe Constantine? I don’t know if you noticed, but he’s not particularly stable, even on a good day. The whole ‘I am a god’ complex, you know. What was he trying to get out of the deal?” She inched her hand inside her coat and touched the gun. Another bang. The dresser was moving away from the door. “He ended up getting much more than he bargained for,” Meir sneered at her. “Now, what are they doing over there?” he demanded as he looked back at the men. Acting quickly, her gun was out and pointed at him before he saw her move. When he looked back, he seemed amused at the sight of the gun. “What are you going to do with that, Eleanor Hennen?” At her surprised look he continued. “Oh yes, I know who you are. Little Ellie Hennen, daughter of Arnie and Betty, sister of Alice. Bleeding heart liberals, every one of you. You’ve never fired a gun 173

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in your life.” He inched closer to her, his gun pointing at her chest. “Do you really think you can shoot me?” She chanced at look at the Dyads. They were deep in their trance. No help there. Using both hands to steady herself, she pushed the gun straight out in front of her. In spite of her efforts, she could see the gun shaking as she pulled back the hammer. “I will shoot,” she said, but even to her own ears she didn’t sound very convincing. Mike had risen to stand behind her. “Shoot, Ellie,” he hissed in her ear. The sound of his voice made her jump and the gun went off. Meir fired at the same time. Her shot went wide, embedding in the wall behind Meir. His shot tore a hole through her shoulder and continued on, grazing Mike’s neck. They both went down. There was no pain. Another blow hit the door as she felt Mike underneath her, trying to sit up. She saw Meir backing away from them. Everything was much brighter, more colorful. “Mr. Meir,” called a harsh male voice from the other side of the door. “Was that gunfire? Are you all right, sir?” “I’m fine. Hold position,” Meir said. Mike propped her up to a sitting position, using his body to support her. She tried to lift her hand with the gun, but she couldn’t raise her arm. Something wet and sticky ran down her chest and back. With her other hand, she reached up to touch her shoulder. Her hand dripped with blood. She stared at it, numb. “Oh God, Ellie, how bad is it?” Mike moved her to check her over. He peeled her jacket away from her shoulder and hissed. “It doesn’t hurt, Mike. Why doesn’t it hurt?” “You’re probably in shock, that’s why,” he said as he eased away from her and stood up. He started toward the bathroom. “Stay where you are,” Meir said, pointing the gun at him. Mike never even slowed. “You shot her, you asshole. I have to stop the bleeding, you ignorant prick.” He dashed back to Eleanor with towels in his hands. Meir seemed at a loss. He watched Mike tear the towel apart. He shifted nervously from foot to foot, the gun pointed at them. “She shot first,” he said. “I would never have shot, but she shot at me first.” “What’s the matter, Meir? Other guys always do your dirty work for you?” Mike wrapped the ripped segments of towel around her shoulder. He pulled it tight and tied it off. “It’s different when you get your own hands dirty, isn’t it? Look what you did to her.” Mike turned Eleanor to face him. “How you doing?” he asked gently. The pain had started as Mike tied up her shoulder. It began as a dull ache, and grew and grew until she didn’t think she would be able to stay conscious. With every beat of

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her heart, the pain laced through her. It radiated from her shoulder down into her body like a river of lava, burning as it went. She couldn’t find the strength to answer Mike. It took all her concentration to remain sitting upright. Looking up, she saw Meir had moved over to the Dyads. Constantine was resting on the table. Meir reached to touch him. “No,” she screamed, making the pain intensify. “Don’t touch him, you’ll die.” Meir didn’t turn away from Constantine. “Why not touch him? That’s how he gave me the power before. Can’t you feel it? The closer you get to them, the stronger the power feels.” He held his hands over Constantine as if he were warming them over a fire. The men around Constantine paid no attention to him. Their concentration held them transfixed. Meir continued, talking to himself, as if he needed convincing. “Why should they be the sole keepers of such power? It’s not theirs to hoard. Do you have any idea what I could do with such power? The world would beg me for its secrets.” Lowering his hands, Meir touched Constantine and gasped. His head flew back, a look of absolute rapture on his face as the power flooded into him. “Oh God,” he moaned. “It’s wonderful, so wonderful.” As his body started to shake, he tried to take his hands away, but they held fast. He looked at his hands impatiently. When he looked around the room, Eleanor saw the first traces of fear in his eyes. He pulled and pulled against his hands. The pounding at the door started again. “No!” he screamed. “No, let me go, let me go.” He looked over at Eleanor, pleading, “Help me, for the love of God, help me. No, no, no, God help me.” Eleanor buried her head against Mike’s chest. She couldn’t watch anymore. Damien had warned her what would happen. Meir’s mind and soul were being devoured by the Balance. He stopped screaming suddenly and she looked over at him. He sat on the floor, his hands still on Constantine. His face was blank, empty. Nobody was home. The men around Constantine took a step back. The partners took their hands off their Dyad’s shoulder. The Dyads broke their contact with Constantine. They all looked around, blinking, as if coming out of a trance. “We picked up a stowaway,” Aiden said, looking at Meir. “Damn,” Damien said, bending down to look at Meir. “I was looking forward to my next meeting with Mr. Meir.” He took Meir’s chin in his hand and raised his face to look into his eyes. “Now I see he has escaped me.” “Hey, guys,” Mike said from the floor. “A little help.” The group turned to look at Mike. Eleanor saw their shocked faces as they took in her blood-covered body. “Clear,” bellowed a voice on the other side of the door. A second later an explosion

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thundered through the room. The force of the blast propelled the dresser across the room, narrowly missing the men. With the door wide open, men streamed in, their weapons ready. Eleanor wasn’t paying much attention. She had done it. She had guarded Jacob and the others until they came out of their trance and now they could take care of themselves. She could rest. Her eyes closed and she leaned back against Mike, giving in to the need to let go. The pain swept over her again as darkness rushed to meet it. She sank into it, welcoming it. Jacob was frozen in place, terrified by the sight in front of him. It couldn’t be real. That could not be Eleanor, lying on the floor covered in blood. His mind and soul would not allow it to be so. Not again. He would not have another precious loved one ripped from him by a senseless act of violence they had nothing to do with. It’s. Not. Real. It wasn’t until Mike looked at him with an expression of pity and loss that reality seeped into his brain. With a roar of pain so deep he felt his heart break, he started for Eleanor. Uniformed men rushed through the door and one made the mistake of planting himself in front of him. He flattened him with one punch to the chin. With their guns rendered useless by the Dyads, two men jumped on Jacob, trying to take him to the floor. He threw the first man off with a hard shove. Picking up the second, he raised the struggling man above his head and hurled him into the oncoming wave of men advancing on them. Without a second look, he started for Eleanor again. Why was it taking so long to get to her? He felt as if he were wading through mud. He made it a few steps nearer when another man jumped on his back. Jacob went to his knee and sent the man flying over his shoulder. When he stood, a man with a knife blocked his path. Growling deep in his throat, he faked left and when the man went for it, brought his right fist through his defenses and broke his nose. Amazed when he didn’t fall, Jacob sent another punch to his kidneys. The man screamed in pain. “Jacob,” he heard Damien call from behind him. “Stop, Jacob.” He ignored him and continued punching the still-standing man. Blood covered his hands as he smashed again and again into the man’s face. Finally, he fell and Jacob stepped over him to rush to Eleanor. He knelt down beside her, all thought of the battle waging around them gone. As gently as possible, he took her from Mike and cradled her in his arms. With shaking fingers he felt for a heartbeat and let out a sigh of relief when he felt a pulse. “Where?” he asked Mike. “Her shoulder. I bandaged it but she’s lost so much blood, Jacob. I couldn’t stop it. I

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tried but it wouldn’t stop.” Jacob pulled back the bandage to examine Eleanor’s shoulder. The entrance wound was small but the exit wound was a gaping hole with blood pouring out of it. “Damien,” he roared. “I need you, now.” He looked around at the battle still waging. All the Dyads were busy fighting. Panic set in. Eleanor didn’t have much time. Her life poured out of her shoulder over his hands. She was white, her lips a deep purple. A figure knelt down next to him. Jacob sighed with relief and then recoiled when he saw Constantine beside him. He reached for Eleanor but Jacob pulled her away. “If you try to touch her again, Dyad or not, oath or not, I will rip out your heart.” Constantine sat back on his heels. “Jacob, please, let me help her. The others may not reach her in time. She is close to traveling on and needs my help. I will not hurt her, not ever again. You have my word on it.” “Your word,” Jacob spat at him. “Your word means nothing. Look around you, Con. Look at her, see where you have brought us.” “I cannot spar words with you while the life pours out of her. Either kill me or let me touch her.” “Please, Jacob,” Mike said. “Let him help her before it’s too late. We’re losing her.” Jacob looked desperately around the room but saw no sign of the battle ending. The Dyads and their partners were keeping the worst of it away from them, but the battle looked far from over. He looked back at Constantine. “If you hurt her again, I will not release you to death, understand? I will keep you alive for a long time, Con.” Constantine didn’t answer. He moved closer and put his hand on Eleanor’s wounded shoulder. The bleeding stopped immediately but Constantine, already weak from his ordeal, faltered. Jacob had no other choice but to offer his hand to draw from. Constantine grasped it and Jacob felt a strong pull. He watched with relief as Eleanor’s wound closed. Within moments, her color was back and she breathed easier. Constantine let go and collapsed. Simon rushed to his side. “What happened?” As the others surrounded them, Jacob explained. “He was too weak to attempt such a healing,” Sebastian said. “He has undone all our work.” “Let us get both Eleanor and Constantine out of this room,” Damien said. “I do not know about the rest of you, but I would like a change of venue.” When Aiden reached to help him, Jacob snapped at him. “Don’t touch her, any of you. I told you she wasn’t trained for this. Look at what knowing us has done to her. Look at what I have done to her. Look…” He felt Damien’s hand on his shoulder. “Come, Jacob. Bring Eleanor and I will check Con’s healing.” Jacob shrugged off all help and stood with Eleanor’s limp body in his arms. Wishing he could take care of her himself but knowing she needed Damien’s help, he 177

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followed his Dyad partner from the room.

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Chapter Twenty-Four She awoke to the smell of flowers. Roses. Mom’s favorite. Dad was always bringing them home for her. Someone held her hand. Her eyelids felt so heavy, she had to force them open. It was worth the effort. Jacob’s beautiful gray eyes were looking at her. She smiled as she took in the whole package. He was so handsome, sitting on a chair pulled close to the bed with his hair ruffled, needing a shave. They stared at each other for a long moment, neither of them wanting to break the quiet. “You look so tired,” she said. He smiled slightly and shook his head, too full of emotion to speak. Instead, he raised her hand to his lips for a kiss. He spread her hand across his cheek and looked back at her. Tears filled his eyes. “I thought I’d lost you. When I saw you lying in Mike’s arms with blood all over you, I thought you were gone. I went a little mad, I think. They are still healing the men who got in my way to reach you. I never want to feel that way again, Eleanor. I never want to see you hurt again.” “Shh,” she said, putting her fingers over his lips. “I’m fine, Jacob. I don’t feel any pain at all.” She moved her shoulder experimentally. “Why don’t I feel worse? My shoulder feels like nothing happened. I did get shot, didn’t I?” “You most certainly did, young woman,” Damien said from the doorway. He came in smiling, followed closely by David, Aiden and Mike. Eleanor struggled to sit up. Jacob rushed to help her, ending up behind her on the bed, supporting her as she rested in his arms. The others gathered around. She felt like Dorothy in the last scene of The Wizard of Oz. “What happened after I passed out?” she asked them all. Damien sat down on the bed beside her. “We made short work of the men who rushed in. The hardest part was stopping Jacob from killing them on his way to you.” “He went all berserk on us,” Mike said, leaning against the bed post. “How’s your neck?” she asked. Mike blushed at her concern. “It’s fine. D healed me right up.” “Thanks for saving my life, Mike.” “What is this, Michael?” Damien said, his eyebrows rising. “I think you left something out of the story you told us.” Mike shrugged, turning an even deeper shade of red. “No big deal. Anyway, she did the same for me.”

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“What happened to Meir?” she asked. Damien shook his head. “He will remain as you last saw him. We cannot heal something which is no longer there. A just reward, some might say.” “But how on earth will you cover this up? He’s an important man. The head of a huge corporation, and what about all his men? I mean, you can’t just let them walk away, can you?” The men looked at each other and laughed. David answered her. “We have been covering up events like this for centuries. A few men with guns are no threat to us. Even now, Samuel and Sebastian are modifying their memories. By the time we leave here, all will be set to rights.” “Nice trick,” she said under her breath. Damien took her hand. “We owe you a great deal, Eleanor. Thank you for keeping us safe. If those men had broken in during the healing process, we would have been defenseless.” The others echoed his thanks. “May we come in?” James said from the door. The men looked at her, waiting for her response. She was puzzled at their stares, but said, “Sure, come on in. The more the merrier.” James nodded at someone she couldn’t see and came into the room. Christopher and Simon came in, supporting Constantine between them. Involuntarily, she backed farther into Jacob’s arms. He kissed her temple and whispered, “It’s all right, love.” Constantine looked at her. His hair was still gray. There were lines on his face and he leaned heavily on Simon and his brother, but he looked much better than he had the last time she’d seen him. They moved him to the side of the bed. He shook off his supporters and sank to his knees beside her, his head bowed. “I have harmed and used you. Night after night, I tormented you in ways only you and I will ever know and yet you helped in my salvation.” He lifted his head to look at her. “I offer myself to you. I name you friend of the Diarchy.” She felt Jacob tense behind her. The other men in the room shot meaningful looks at each other. Constantine continued, “If ever you have need of me, I will come. I offer you my lifeblood, my Balance. You have my oath it will be so.” He looked over at the others. “Such as it is. I ask forgiveness for the wrongs I have done to you and your family. Not now, but some day, after I have redeemed myself.” She looked around the room. Simon had come to stand behind Constantine. His hand was on his shoulder giving what strength and support he could. Christopher watched his brother with a look of pride and relief. James, looking twenty years younger, beamed from behind him. If these three could forgive Constantine, could she do any less? She reached out and 180

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touched Constantine’s bowed head. At her touch, he hesitantly looked up. “I forgive you. You’ll have to ask my sister for hers, I can’t give it for her, but you have mine.” He bowed his head again, overcome. Simon leaned down to him. “Come, you must rest now, Con. You have a long road of healing ahead of you.” “Yes,” Damien said, standing up. “Let us all go so Eleanor can rest. We healed your wounds, but you are weak from the process.” After they had gone, she asked Jacob, “What will happen to Constantine? Will he be punished for what he’s done?” “He will not be harmed because it would harm Christopher. For the rest, I don’t know. They’ll go back to the Diarchy. It will be decided there what is best to do with them.” “What are they like, the rest of the Dyads?” He turned her in his arms to look at her. “Would you like to find out for yourself?” he said, hope filling his eyes. She looked back at him, not sure she’d heard him right. “What do you mean?” she asked, wanting to be absolutely sure what he meant. “I want to be with you, Eleanor. Whatever that means. Wherever that means. Either you come with Damien and me, or I leave Damien and stay with you. I don’t care, as long as we’re together.” Throwing her arms around him, she pulled him close. “Oh, Jacob, you don’t know how much I’ve wanted you to say that. I love you so much.” She trailed kisses all over his face. He pulled back, laughing. “Well, what’s it to be? Which path do you choose for us?” She could never ask him to leave Damien. To give up immortality. She loved him too much to even think about it. Getting up on her knees, she looked him in the eyes. “We’ll stay with Damien and the others.” When Jacob tried to respond, she put her hand over his mouth. “I’ll fit myself in somewhere, I promise. I know I can find some way to help you all. And when the time comes, I’ll leave quietly. I’ll never tell. No one will regret taking me in.” He took her face in his hands. “You never have to leave, love. Constantine named you friend of the Diarchy. Although if he didn’t, I’m sure Damien or David would have.” She looked at him, puzzled. “As friend, they have found you worthy of their greatest gift. They’ve offered you immortality.” She sat back on her heels, dumbfounded. Immortality? Her? Never to die, never to grow old. She could stay with Jacob forever. It was too much to take in. As if he knew what she was feeling, he said, “You don’t have to decide now. We 181

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have time, Eleanor. All the time in the world.” He drew her into his arms and kissed her. She kissed him back with all the love she had to give. Yes, he was right. They had all the time in the world.

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Epilogue Eleanor thought her heart would burst with happiness. She was standing in her backyard, feeling her parents’ presence all around her, watching her best friend and sister marry. She didn’t even mind the apple green maid-of-honor dress Alice made her wear. At this moment, she loved everyone and everything. “With this ring, I thee wed,” Bobby said. Eleanor saw tears in his eyes. Her friend was getting the one thing he had wanted for years—Alice. How could she not have seen it? She could look at the two of them now without a trace of envy because she had found what they had, with Jacob. Her eyes searched the crowd of well-wishing humans and non-humans, until they locked on Jacob. He stared back at her with that grin she loved on his face. The grin that said, “Wait until I get you alone.” Eleanor felt herself blushing and looked away. Every night with Jacob was a new and exciting experience. He’d had centuries to perfect his lovemaking skills and she was reaping the benefits. Life was good. She looked back over the crowd of smiling faces. It was an eclectic group. Homeless people next to millionaires, doctors next to foot powder salesmen and mortals next to immortals. Not your average Minnesota wedding. She found Jacob again, standing with Damien, David, Mike and Aiden. Although Alice and Bobby had invited all the Dyads and their partners, Damien thought it best to limit their numbers. He was right. They did draw attention. Eleanor caught Alice’s friends and Mrs. Montgomery sneaking peeks at them. Even Dave Swartz’s wife, Jenny, the most in-love, married woman Eleanor knew, was staring at the Dyads and their partners with a look of lustful awe. She couldn’t blame the women. Even Mike, in a suit and tie, looked especially dapper today. Damien and David had made an effort to look as different from each other as possible. Damien wore his hair flowing around his shoulders. David’s was tied back and he’d added glasses and a fake mustache. It toned down their sameness, but nothing could hide their height or magnetism. With Jacob and Aiden standing between them, their row was a “yummy feast for the female eye”, as Emma put it. “I promise to love, honor and obey,” Alice said. “Well, within reason,” she continued, winking at Eleanor. The crowd tittered. As the other bridesmaid, Emma looked lovely in the green apple dress. They had decorated her wheelchair with flowers and ribbons. She looked like a princess on a movable throne. Bobby’s brothers made up the rest of the wedding party. As they filed down the makeshift aisle after the ceremony, she caught Jacob staring at her. His face was

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pensive. Later, when they were dancing, she saw the same look. “Penny for your thoughts,” she said. Jacob slowed their waltz pace. “When I saw you coming down the aisle, something occurred to me. I haven’t asked you to marry me.” Eleanor’s heart sped up. She felt all the blood leave her head. This was it. The moment she had been hoping for, waiting for. Jacob kissed her hand. “You’ve brought me back to life, Eleanor. Before I met you, I simply existed. With you, every day is a gift. I love you more than I can express. I would be honored to have you as my wife.” Eleanor felt tears flood her eyes. Emotion closed her throat. When she didn’t answer, she saw doubt flicker across Jacob’s face. “I understand if you do not want to make our relationship formal. Forever is a long time to commit to one person. You may not want to limit your future options…” Still unable to speak, Eleanor put her hand over his mouth to stop the nonsense coming out. She looked deeply into his eyes and nodded. Jacob stopped dancing. “Does that mean yes, you’ll marry me or—” Eleanor found her voice. “I’ll marry you, Jacob. There’s nothing I want more than to be your wife.” With a triumphant yell, Jacob picked her up and twirled her around. They bumped into Aiden, dancing by with a very flushed and excited Grace Elliot. “Whoa there, Jacob,” he said. “You dance like you fight—arms and legs everywhere.” He twirled Grace out from his body. With a flick of his wrist, he brought her spinning back into his arms. Grace giggled with delight. Eleanor thought she looked beautiful. Aiden sent her spinning again. “I like the quiet ones,” he said, winking at Eleanor. “You never know what you’ll find.” Doctor Andy was standing on the sidelines. Aiden handed Grace off to him. He kissed a beaming Grace’s hand. “Forgive me, sweeting. I must leave you for a while.” He slapped Andy on the back. “Dance with her, man. You know you want to.” Andy, taken by surprise, looked at Grace with a new appreciation. “Thanks, don’t mind if I do,” he said. He swept Grace away with an energetic polka step. Aiden put his arm around Jacob’s shoulder. “You two look ready to burst. What’s going on?” Mike came up to the three of them. “Damien sent me to get you two guys and Apple Annie here. Seriously, Eleanor, don’t let anyone tell you green is not your color. You can wear that dress next Halloween. Jacob can go as Johnny Appleseed, and you can be his faithful sidekick, Applesauce. Watch out for migrant workers, though. Don’t want to get picked before your time.” Aiden burst out laughing. “Mike, one of these days that smart mouth of yours is going to land you in a world of trouble. I only hope I’m there to watch you wiggle out of it.”

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“That day might come sooner than you think if you keep directing your witty barbs at my soon-to-be wife,” Jacob said. Eleanor watched as comprehension dawned on their faces. She jumped as Aiden let out a whoop and swept her into his arms. After much well-wishing directed at Eleanor and backslapping directed at Jacob, Mike reminded them Damien wanted to see them. He ushered them through the maze of dining tables, with their hen-on-a-nest centerpieces and into the Hennen kitchen. The two Dyads, along with Alice and Bobby, were waiting for them. “Hey, guys,” Mike said. “Guess who else has signed up for the old ball-and-chain?” David laughed. “Well, I know you cannot be speaking of my wandering-eye, revolving-bed partner here,” he said, grabbing Aiden by the scruff of the neck and giving him a playful shake. “It can only be the two of you,” Damien said. He moved to stand in front of Eleanor and Jacob. “I share in your joy.” He took one of their hands in each of his. Eleanor felt a tingle of power shoot into her. For a moment, Damien linked with her, bringing Jacob with him. She felt the outpouring of love from both men surround her. The link was severed abruptly as Alice pushed past Damien and swept Eleanor into a hug. “Oh, Ellie. I’m so happy for you.” Bobby held out his hand to Jacob who clasped it. “Welcome to the family. I hope you like chickens.” Everyone laughed and after another round of well-wishing and backslapping, the Dyads went to Alice and Bobby. “David and I have given much thought to the wedding gift we would present to you on this happy day.” Damien said. “The Hennen sisters and you, Bobby, have enriched our lives, and through us, the Diarchy. We wanted our gift to be worthy of the trust you have given us. Michael, would you please bring in our gift?” Michael hurried out in the direction of the living room. Bobby circled his wife’s waist with his arm. “Damien, you and your people gave Alice back to us. You don’t need to give us anything else.” “Too late,” Damien said. “This gift cannot be undone. Come in, Michael.” Michael wheeled in a nervous Emma. Damien and David went to stand on either side of her. Each brother offered her his hand. She took their hands, smiling up at them. Emma put her feet on the floor and, as if she had been doing it all her life, stood. She took a few wobbly steps toward Alice. “They didn’t use pixie dust, Alice, but it was magic just the same.” The room erupted. The End

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About the Author Born in a decade that starts with an F, Ann Hinnenkamp finds herself in an age decade beginning with the same dreaded letter. Her plan had always been to accept aging with the same effortless grace as any movie star with the last name of Hepburn, but now that her forehead is sliding down around her nose and her neck attracts every rooster in the yard, she’s given up on grace and put her faith in a good moisturizer and turtleneck sweaters. Ann has a B.A. in theater and went to graduate school at the U. of M. in the M.F.A. acting program. She freelances as an actor and director in the Twin Cities area and has played everyone from Eleanor of Aquitaine, to the third extra on the right with the gap in her teeth. Taking advice from her father to heart, she never quit her day job. She works at a messenger service where the motto is, “If you got it, a courier brought it.” Her years in the business world have taught her a few valuable lessons: When designing a floor plan, never put your own office across from the bathrooms; All it has to do is snow to turn a great day to shit; It’s impossible to pick up a monkey at the airport, look him in the eye and then deliver him to a testing lab; And transporting caskets, even when empty, is just plain scary. The author welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email address on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

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