~ 42 ~
"Are you all right, Dr. Attwood?"
Walter grimaced as James helped him to his feet. "I think it’s just a
bad sprain," he said, tentatively testing his ankle as he put his weight
on it. Looking around at the flattened tents and injured men, Walter’s
eyes anxiously searched the debris for Tom and Ray. Sensing his
concern, James nodded over to their right and Walter let out a sigh of
relief to see Ray jogging toward them.
"Where are the others?" Walter asked as soon as Ray joined them.
"Mark is looking for the two men he assigned to Sloan."
"And Tom?"
"Right after the first explosion, he ran by me and yelled something
about seeing Lewis here."
"Tom was right," Mark said, joining them. "Lewis led the attack."
"Makes sense," Ray said grimly. "Sabotaging this pillar’s excavation is
important enough that Lewis would be here with his men."
"Definitely," James said in agreement. "We were fairly sure he knew
about the excavation from the beginning, which is why I invited all of
you here in hopes of enlisting your help."
Shaking his head sadly, James looked around at the injured men and the
nearly destroyed campsite. "I guess I misjudged Lewis’s sources. He
evidently knew not only about our excavation, but of your expected
arrival here."
Suddenly aware of Mark’s distress, James turned to him and looked
searchingly into his face. "Your men? Sloan?"
"Lewis took advantage of the attack for his own purpose. When his men
set off the second explosion, he shot Blakemore and Curtis, took Sloan,
and left this."
Walter reached over and took the chess piece and necklace from Mark’s
outstretched hand. He fingered the smooth black stone pendant and
looked at Ray questioningly.
"It’s Sloan’s," Ray nodded curtly. "Matt and Tom picked them up from
the river behind the safe house one afternoon. Tom gave Sloan this one.
"I remember Gracie telling me she helped Sloan find a cord for it and
kidded her about Dominant men’s bad taste in jewelry," he said shaking
his head.
Suddenly Tom ran up and stopped short, his eyes focused on Walter’s open
hand and the ivory Queen and necklace he held.
As he closed his eyes, he swayed slightly. James reached out to steady
him but pulled his hand back as Tom abruptly released a searing flash of
*rage*despair*loss* .
And in that second, Walter vividly relived his wife’s death and Ray knew
without a doubt the emptiness of life without Grace and Matt.
As James touched his arm, Tom turned and walked away with him, leaving
behind a turmoil of emotions in the men silently standing there. Turning
to Mark for an explanation, Walter was shocked to see him staring
sightlessly ahead, pale and visibly shaken. "Mark?" he asked reaching
out to put a hand on his shoulder.
"Amanda said they were partner-coupled but I couldn’t believe it," he
said, his voice rough with emotion. Looking over at Tom and James,
huddled together, talking quietly, he shook his head then looked
bleakly at Walter. "I have no doubt about it now."
"You must have felt Tom’s emotions even more keenly than Ray and I,"
Walter said sympathetically, giving Mark’s shoulder a squeeze.
Mark nodded and swallowed with difficulty. "I never let myself think
about the possibility of being without Amanda, but this...." He took a
shaky breath and ran his hand across his face.
"This will make you treasure her even more," Ray said quietly.
Mark looked over at Ray, and seeing the kindness and understanding in
his dark eyes, gave him a quick, grateful smile.
"Will Tom be all right?" Walter asked worriedly as he looked over to
where Tom and his father stood silently. "He felt so badly the first
time Sloan was almost kidnapped."
"Tom is the best, but Lewis is better," Mark said tersely. "If Lewis
wanted to kidnap Sloan it was only a matter of time before he succeeded,
regardless of what Tom or you would try to do to protect her.
"If anyone can help Tom through this, it will be James," Mark said
firmly. Taking a deep breath, he turned his attention back to the
activity going on around them. Nodding at Ray and Walter, he walked
toward his men and began organizing them to assess the damage.
"I can understand Lewis leaving Sloan’s necklace, but why would he
leave the chess piece?" Ray asked curiously.
"Tom said he and Lewis often played together because Lewis saw chess as
the ultimate in battle strategy," Walter said looking at the ivory Queen
in his hand.
"And the significance of this particular piece?" Ray asked, taking it
gingerly from Walter’s hand.
"It’s the Queen. It protects the King," Walter explained. "Lewis is
telling Tom that since he has Sloan, Tom is open to capture. The only
problem is that Lewis misread the board."
"What do you mean?"
"He doesn’t know that Tom and Sloan are partner-coupled. He thinks she
protects him because of his importance to our cause. The way the Queen
protects the King."
"And Tom’s not the King?"
"No," Walter said, looking over at Tom who was now deep in conversation
with Mark. "Tom has upset the board.
"He’s the Black Knight who now protects the White Queen."
Taking the Queen from Ray, Walter held it up admiringly. "And the other
thing Lewis seems to have forgotten is that the Queen is the most
powerful piece on the board."
~ 43 ~
As Sloan came to, there were two things she was sure of -- she was not
lying in her own bed, and the hand that was touching her body was not
Tom’s.
"Does my touch frighten you, Dr. Parker?"
Her eyes flew open at the sound of that chillingly familiar voice and
she found herself staring into the blue-white gaze of her nightmares.
She struggled to move away from him as he sat on the bed next to her,
but he grabbed the front of her shirt and roughly pushed her back onto
the bed. As he ran his hand over her body again, he watched her face
and was surprised to see the steadiness of the icy glare she directed at
him.
"Your touch only repulses me, Lewis," she hissed defiantly, shoving his
hand away disdainfully as she sat up.
Lewis sat back and tilted his head in puzzlement. The first time he had
kidnapped Sloan, she had resonated with fear of him and nearly fainted
in terror when he had touched her mouth. Now he had just touched her in
what humans would consider a very personal way, and yet she was more
angry than afraid.
And unlike the first time, she now looked directly at him, her green
eyes flashing and her chin raised belligerently.
"I don’t know what you think you can accomplish by holding me, but the
pillar will be excavated and the Peace Negotiations will continue and
Ed and Amanda will still..."
"Don’t insult me, Dr. Parker," Lewis said sharply cutting her off. "You
know very well why you are here. You’re my means to an end."
He felt her resolve falter slightly, then grow stronger as he caught a
fleeting glimpse of...
"No!" he snarled in denial. Moving his hand up, Lewis reached for
Sloan’s cheek.
The sharp crack of her hand slapping his away, as well as the burst of
outraged feelings she unleashed, stunned him.
"How dare you!" she challenged her body taut with insult.
"So," he said, his jaw muscles flexing as he tried to control his anger.
"This time you know what that touch means."
Seeing Sloan’s confusion, he laughed mirthlessly. "Don’t you remember
the first time I kidnapped you? How I touched your face when I asked if
you and Tom had become intimate? I knew by your lack of reaction that
you hadn’t."
"And now that you know we are?" Sloan asked stiffly.
Lewis considered and then shrugged. "Tom has always had a great ....
curiosity ... about humans. I’m sure he’ll put this new knowledge to
good use on his next assignment."
"You’re so sure of yourself, aren’t you, Lewis?"
"I’m his mentor," he said smugly. "I created him."
"But you don’t know him," Sloan said softly.
"He’s what I’ve made him," he stated abruptly. "I taught him
everything."
"That’s the difference between you and me, Lewis," Sloan said leaning
forward, a triumphant gleam in her eyes. "Tom is *who* I’ve helped him
become," she said, her pride and love for him so strong that Lewis’s
eyes widened in amazement. "And this is what *he* taught *me*...."
Closing her eyes, Sloan concentrated on the richness of her passion and
love and the sweet tenderness and devotion she had for Tom.
Lewis gasped in shock. "It’s not possible," he muttered staring at
Sloan’s face. "He’s special among the Chosen, he’d never...."
"Partner-couple with me?" Sloan finished, the depth of her feelings
shining in her eyes and the strength of her conviction in Tom’s love for
her resonating around her.
"You’re not fit to be his partner," Lewis uttered harshly, lunging
forward and wrapping his strong hands around her pale neck. "You’re
merely a temporary distraction."
~ 44 ~
"How are you feeling, Tom?"
Tom looked up into Ray’s worried face and nodded curtly. "Better," he
said shortly.
"Mind if I sit, or would you rather be alone?" Ray asked hesitantly.
"I’m already more alone than I want to be," Tom said painfully. Looking
at Ray still standing anxiously near him, Tom moved over to make room
for him. "I’m sorry, Ray. Please sit with me."
Ray eased his stocky frame gingerly onto the boulder Tom was perched on
and the two sat side by side in the early morning light, watching the
activity as the campsite was quickly being set up again.
"Mark said if Lewis wanted to kidnap Sloan there was nothing any of us
could have done to stop him," he began, glancing at Tom’s hard profile.
"But if I’d been there....."
"Lewis might have shot you instead of Mark’s men," Ray finished.
"But you said that you would protect Grace and Matt with your life ..."
"I would," Ray said, putting his hand on Tom’s arm. "Just as you
would’ve protected Sloan if you had been with her. But you weren’t.
And because you weren’t, you’re here now and this time when you meet
Lewis, it will be different, because you’re different."
Looking down at Ray’s dark hand on his arm, Tom reached out and touched
a fingertip to the gold wedding ring gleaming on it. "Thank you for
talking to me about your feelings."
"Any time, Tom," Ray said quietly. "Any time at all."
Looking over at the main tent, Ray noticed Walter and Mark talking with
James. "Will Mark be flying back to Pasadena with you?"
"Yes, we should be able to leave shortly," Tom said with a nod. "Mark
is pretty sure where Lewis is holding Sloan."
"Do you think Sloan’s all right?" Ray asked worriedly.
"Lewis hasn’t killed her yet, if that’s what you’re asking," Tom said
quietly.
Ray reflected solemnly that what Tom had left unsaid was just as
frightening a possibility. "What are you going to do?"
"Whatever it takes," Tom said flatly.
Ray nodded in understanding. "Just remember -- anything you need, all
you have to do is ask," he added.
Seeing James walking toward them, Ray turned to Tom and patted his back.
"I’ll see you back home," he said warmly. Hopping down, he walked back
to the campsite, giving James a nod as they passed.
"What did he want?" James asked curiously, looking back at Ray.
"He didn’t want anything," Tom said with a slight smile. "He was
offering me his help to find Sloan."
His father arched an eyebrow in surprise. "He would do this knowing how
dangerous Lewis is?"
"He’s a friend," Tom said simply.
James shook his head in disbelief. "Why would these humans risk their
own lives...?"
"That’s the big difference between them and us, James. They see the
importance of the individual. They can look beyond what someone has
done and see who they really are and believe in that person."
"And these human friends of yours believe in who you are?"
"Yes."
"And Sloan?"
"Despite everything I’ve done, as undeserving as I may be, somehow she
loves me," Tom said, his voice soft with wonder. Sensing a stab of
regret, he turned to face his father and was surprised to see painful
understanding reflected in his pale eyes.
Suddenly a car pulled up and Tom heard Walter calling out, asking him
and James if they were ready to go. Looking at his father in surprise,
Tom jumped down to the ground and stood before him.
"Your human friends aren’t the only ones who believe in you," James said
smiling gently.
"I wasn’t able to help you before, but I can now, and nothing is going
to stop me this time," he said firmly, turning to walk with Tom to the
waiting car.
~ 45 ~
"Ed! What a surprise to see ...." Tory’s voice faltered as she took in
Ed’s drawn face and the pained expression in his expressive eyes.
"May I come in?" he asked heavily.
Tory’s eyes flickered shut for a second, and she leaned against the door
as her stomach lurched and a chill ran through her.
"It’s Sloan, isn’t it?" she said weakly. "What’s happened to her?"
Ed reached out quickly to steady her. "She’s been kidnapped," he said
quietly. Seeing her sudden pallor, he slipped his arm around her
shoulders and, shutting the door behind him, guided her to the couch.
She sat stock still, her arms wrapped around herself, her eyes shut and
her mouth trembling.
"When? How?" she asked in disbelief. Turning to Ed, her grey eyes
brimming with tears, she suddenly became angry. "And where was Tom?"
she demanded, the tears splashing down her cheeks. "Why didn’t he
protect her?"
Ed pulled her against him, hugging her tightly and shushing her as he
rocked her in his arms. "Walter said it wasn’t Tom’s fault, two other
men were guarding her and Lewis shot them to get Sloan." Feeling Tory
shiver in his arms, Ed leaned down to kiss her hair and rub his cheek
against her head. "Tom and Mark will be landing soon and we’ll know
more then."
"Tom will find Sloan," she said firmly, leaning back in his arms, her
eyes searching his face.
"Yes," Ed said, reaching up to wipe the tears from her soft cheeks.
"Tom will find her."
~ 46 ~
Sloan’s scream was cut short as Lewis pushed her backward, his hands
fastened around her neck.
"And what is Tom to you?" he asked, his hands flexing painfully around
her throat.
"Everything," Sloan gasped. Summoning up all her strength, she grabbed
his wrists and dug her nails viciously into his skin. The unexpected
pain made Lewis loosen his grip momentarily and she pulled away from his
hands. But he was quick, and before Sloan could move out from under him,
he was straddling her legs, his hands pressing her arms down onto the
bed.
"Do you really think you can hurt me?" Lewis said a cold smile curving
his lips.
"If you can feel pain, I can hurt you," Sloan said. "Like I did Lynch."
"Lynch?" he repeated in disbelief.
"Just like this..." and abruptly Sloan brought her knee up sharply
between Lewis’ legs as he straddled her.
With a sinking heart she watched as he paled and gasped sharply,
tightening his grip on her arms but never moving from his position over
her. She shivered as she saw the malevolence flare in his eyes and felt
his breath on her face as he leaned in toward her.
"Are you so anxious to die, Dr. Parker?" he whispered his breathing
uneven.
"I don’t want to die, but I’m not afraid," she said, her gaze steady.
"Does this love of yours make you so fearless that instead of being
willing to die *with* Tom, you are now willing to die *for* him?" he
asked cruelly.
"Yes," she answered without hesitation.
"You foolish humans," he snorted in disgust. "You think love is so
important. It means nothing to us."
"Tom is different now...."
"Tom is confused," Lewis interrupted sharply. "His misplaced sense of
loyalty compelled him to come to you once before, to try to save you and
then stay to die with you. But it has nothing to do with love."
Moving off of her, Lewis stood, a flicker of respect crossing his face
for a fleeting second as he stared down at her and saw the strong woman
that the defiant young girl had become.
He could sense the same feelings of protectiveness and love that he’d
felt in her mother that day he had threatened Sloan and although he
didn’t understand why, he knew without a doubt that like her mother,
Sloan would willingly sacrifice herself for Tom.
"There are worse things than dying," he reminded her dispassionately as
the hard mask of his face settled again. Then turning, he left the room
without a backward glance.
~ 47 ~
"Can you and Mark mask yourselves well enough to get in?" James asked,
taking the binoculars Mark handed him.
"Enough to surprise the guards, but I’m sure Lewis already knows we’re
here," Tom said, shrugging his jacket off.
"But then, this was his goal all along. The attack he led on the
excavation site was aimed at sabotaging your efforts to uncover the
pillar, but he couldn’t resist the opportunity to personally kidnap
Sloan in order to get me to come to him.
"Well, I’m here," he coldly, slapping a fresh magazine into his revolver
and slipping it into the holster.
James watched anxiously as Tom and Mark silently worked their way down
the embankment and around to the back of the large house. Picking up
the binoculars, he focused on the house and, taking a steadying breath,
concentrated on watching for Tom’s signal.
~ 48 ~
"Ed!" Sloan cried, running into his arms. "How did you get here?"
She hugged him and laughed as he swung her around.
"It’s good to hear you laugh," he said, setting her down. "Just like
the old days, right?"
Sloan looked at him in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"When it was just you and me, Sloan," Ed said grinning. "I’ve missed
spending time with you .... going to movies .... working late at the
lab .... having pizza ....all the things we used to do together before
Tom came between our friendship."
Sloan slowly dropped her arms and stared at Ed in disbelief. Backing
away from him, she stumbled against a small table and suddenly found
herself seated across from Walter.
"Your mind just hasn’t been on your work lately, Sloan" he said
solemnly. Sliding a stack of printouts across the table to her, Walter
shook his head. "These distractions are bad. They’re slowing your
research down and putting our grant money in jeopardy."
Sloan pushed back from the table in panic, knocking over her chair.
"I’m sorry," she gasped, looking from Walter to Ed. "I didn’t mean to
let you both down. My work and my friends are very important to me.
I’ve just had so much on my mind ..... "
"Is Tom worth it?" Walter asked, rising to face her. "Worth losing
your position in the research community? Worth losing our funding?"
"Worth losing your friends?" Ed added, suddenly at her side.
"Tom is worth everything .... " she whispered painfully. She tried to
get her bearings but the stark whiteness of the room surrounding her was
disorienting and Ed and Walter seemed to be moving and spinning around
her.
"I can’t let you do this, Sloan."
She whirled around, the familiar voice flooding her with relief.
"Tom!" she cried, launching herself into his open arms. "I knew you’d
come."
Clutching him tightly, she buried her face against his neck, sobbing and
shaking. She kissed and nuzzled his neck desperately, but pulled back
suddenly, realizing something was wrong. She stared at him, frightened,
because for the first time since they’d become close, she wasn’t able to
feel his presence and love. Squeezing her eyes shut tightly, she tried
to concentrate on Tom’s feelings but found it difficult to focus her
thoughts.
"I can’t let you do this," he repeated urgently. "Who you are .... what
you’re doing .... is more important than me."
"No!" she cried, her eyes flying open in shock, her hands grasping the
front of his shirt. "That can go on without me. But you’re special,
even among the Chosen..."
"It’s too late, Sloan," he said regretfully, look sadly into her
upturned face. "Lewis has let me come to say goodbye to you...." he
reached up to caress her face, his fingers gently stroking her
tearstained cheek and moving to her trembling mouth. "My life for
yours...."
"No, Tom!" she pleaded, her throat tight and raw. "It should be me, not
you."
"How touching."
Sloan’s heart caught in her throat at the sound of Lewis’s sardonic
voice. "Lewis .... please," she whispered hoarsely, turning to face
him.
Lewis held up his revolver and pulled back the slide, the metallic sound
of the chamber loading echoing loudly in the sudden vacuum of the room.
"Haven’t we done this before, Dr. Parker?" he said softly, raising his
arm and aiming the gun at Tom.
Sloan screamed but her cry was lost in the deafening noise of the gun
going off. As she saw Tom fall, she felt the darkness close around her
and the last sound she heard was the ringing of a spent shell hitting
the floor.
~~~~~
Lewis smiled coldly in satisfaction as he let Sloan fall limply back
onto the bed. She had responded immediately to the drug he had injected
her with, and in her emotionally heightened state, Lewis had easily
manipulated her feeling and emotions. The horror of what she believed
she saw, as well as the thought that she was the cause, was so
traumatizing that she had mentally shut herself down and now lay nearly
comatose.
"You believe your pitiful life is worth giving up for him," Lewis said
shaking his head in disgust, " but you don’t realize that we don’t think
of our lives that way. Despite his attachment to you, Tom knows his
worth and his destiny to the Dominants as a special Chosen. And now
that you are no longer able to distract him, he will return to me and
together, we will end this pathetic fight you humans have started."
Lifting his head, he smiled to himself as he rose and walked to the
door. He had sensed Tom and two other Dominants watching the house and
had bided his time, knowing that Tom would come to him. Now he felt Tom
strongly nearby and recognized the other man as James’s man, Mark.
Hearing sounds of a struggle, Lewis knew that Tom and Mark had
overpowered his two guards. Walking down the hall, he turned into the
large unfurnished living room.
~ 49 ~
"Welcome back, Tom."
The smooth smile on Lewis’s face froze in place as he was hit by the
brutal intensity of the feral gaze that Tom swept over him.
"Where is she?" he scowled fiercely, suddenly in front of Lewis, one
hand at his throat, the other holding a gun to his head.
Lewis grabbed his wrists and, twisting to the side, threw Tom down hard,
sending the revolver flying out of his hand. As he hit the floor, Tom
rolled out of the way, narrowly missing Lewis’s foot as it shot out
toward him.
Mark moved forward but was stopped by James, who had just run into the
house. "They have unfinished business," he explained succinctly,
nodding at the two men who were now slowly circling each other. "I’ll
stay here. You take care of getting the two guards into the van."
"Where is she?" Tom repeated harshly. "I can’t sense her but I know
she’s nearby."
Lewis blocked a hard swing and struck Tom in the ribs as he spun by him.
"You can’t sense her because I’ve drugged her," he said with
ill-concealed smugness. "Sloan is as good as dead to you now, so it’s
useless to ....."
The rest of his taunt was lost as Tom slammed him up against the wall,
his forearm hard against his throat.
"Cornering the Queen is a weak move, Lewis. But then, your strategy was
always limited by your lack of imagination," Tom said contemptuously.
"My men have sabotaged the airport in Mexico," he gasped, his eyes
blazing triumphantly. "Attwood and Peterson are grounded."
"They aren’t the only pieces that protect the Queen."
"Surely you don’t count Tate.....?"
"Narrow thinking," Tom said cuttingly. "Look beyond the white pieces on
the board...."
Lewis’s eyes narrowed as he felt the strength of Tom’s despair and loss.
Touching on his emotional imprint, Lewis was shocked to sense the same
feelings of protectiveness and love in Tom that he had felt in Sloan.
And at that moment, he knew that as long as Sloan lived, Tom would
protect her -- even at the cost of his own life.
Standing as close to the two men as he was, James could sense the flow
of their emotions and immediately knew when Lewis decided that the only
way to sever Tom and Sloan’s bond was to eliminate Sloan. And as he
felt the same piercing realization cut through Tom, James lunged
forward.
"No!" he shouted, forcing *command*obedience* into his voice as he
quickly jerked Tom backward before he could crush Lewis’s throat. He
loosened his grip on Tom’s shirt and powerfully stared the two men down.
"As much as I would personally relish your death, Lewis, I accept the
fact that it would alienate me from the Council and bring retribution on
my son," James said harshly, stepping forward and allowing the full
force of his presence to hit Lewis. "And the pleasure of your death is
not worth that."
Flickering a glance at Tom, James nodded toward the hallway. "Go to
Sloan. Leave Lewis to me."
As Tom dashed down the hall, James turned back to Lewis who was watching
him warily.
"I spared your life only because of your position," James said, his
disdain resonating coldly from him.
"And who are you to threaten me?" Lewis sneered, pushing himself away
from the wall to stand face to face with James.
"A man of honor .... which you are not," James grated, his eyes burning
into Lewis’s and watching with grim satisfaction, as his blue-white
gaze faltered.
"This isn’t the first time you’ve misjudged the emotional bond between
two people who are partner-coupled," he said. As Lewis tried to move
away from him, James grabbed his arm and pulled him back roughly.
"Do *not* turn away from me," he snarled, his anger and outrage flaring
hotly. Pushing Lewis back against the wall, James loomed over him, his
breathing harsh with his effort to control the emotions welling up in
him.
"You thought that by eliminating Sloan, you would free Tom. That he
would give up, forget her. I assure you he won’t," James said, his eyes
hard. "Just as I would never forget Beth or cease my efforts to clear
her name and restore her honor."
"She died in the course of a mission, " Lewis said evasively.
"You would know," James said grimly. Seeing a flicker of surprise cross
Lewis’s face, he nodded. "I found out that she had a partner on that
final training mission.
"The two top chameleons on one last mission -- one, a superb tactician
the other, intuitively brilliant as only a Chosen can be. And if not
for an unfortunate ‘miscalculation’ which resulted in Beth’s death,
who’s to say which of you would’ve been promoted to Head Trainer of the
Chameleon Program?"
"I was the best," Lewis ground out.
"By default," James retorted.
"She made a mistake," Lewis insisted, his throat dry with nervousness.
"She calibrated the explosion herself."
"With the timer you gave her," James said tightly.
Lewis’s eyes grew wide in consternation and he paled visibly. "How did
you know?" he said in a strangled voice.
"Mark has found out a great deal about you recently," James said
meaningfully.
"And what do you intend to do with this knowledge?"
"I have a option for you," James said with a calculating look.
"You don’t seem to realize that the emotional connection Tom and Sloan
have made has changed them both. Even if she were to die, Tom would
still be who he is now, not what you created...."
"No!" Lewis said adamantly. "You don’t understand the connection of a
mentor...."
"And *you* don’t understand the connection of a partner-coupling," James
said abruptly. "I won’t have their bond severed."
"And you expect to stop me by....?"
"Revealing your willful and self-centered actions in sabotaging Beth on
that last mission," James said flatly. "You would be publicly
dishonored and humiliated and the Council would ask you to relinquish
your position as Head Trainer."
Seeing the defeat in Lewis’s eyes, James pressed his demands.
"And in addition to leaving Tom and Sloan alone, you will allow Mark to
present new evidence to the Council, clearly showing that the
miscalculation that took Beth’s life was due to equipment malfunction,
not error on her part."
Lewis nodded grudgingly. "But those are my only concessions," he said
coldly. "I will continue to fight against you and any Dominants who are
misguided enough to think peaceful coexistence with humans is possible."
"And what then, Lewis?" James asked curiously. "After the fighting is
over and there is no one to hate, what will be your purpose in life?"
~ 50 ~
As Tom threw the door open, he stopped abruptly. The windowless stark
white room with its suffocating stillness sent a deep seated chill
through him. Even more frightening was the slender body lying too
quietly on the small bed, auburn curls fanning the pillow, green eyes
staring sightlessly.
Crossing the room in a few quick strides, he fell to his knees by the
bed, his chest tight and his breathing labored. Desperately, he tried
to touch Sloan’s emotional imprint but was rebuffed by ferocious waves
of *despair*loss*.
Reaching out to touch her cheek, Tom was shocked at the coldness of her
skin and the lack of her response to his touch. Cradling her face in
his trembling hands, he gently turned it toward him. Her blank gaze and
the lack of recognition were so painful to him that he gasped
involuntarily. Leaning over her, he roughly took her into his arms,
clutching her tightly to him as if he could somehow will his warmth and
love into her body. He buried his face in her soft hair and closed his
eyes, trying to focus on her emotions and feelings, but unable to break
through the storm of pain and hopelessness he encountered.
As he slowly nuzzled her cheek, Tom inhaled the familiar fragrance of
her skin, and the fleeting memory of the feel of her arms around his
neck, and her mouth, soft against his, sent a pang of longing searing
through him. Catching his breath, he lowered his head to rest it against
her neck but abruptly jerked it back up as he felt her flinch at his
touch. Reaching his hand up, Tom gently brushed her hair back from her
throat.
The livid marks of Lewis’s hands stood out starkly against the pale skin
of Sloan’s neck. The sight of the bruises and the thought of Lewis
touching her so intimately hit him savagely, and his burst of
*outrage*anger* was so intense that Sloan cried out softly and feebly
tried to push him away.
"Oh, Sloan," he whispered, his joy at her response tempered by the
knowledge that it was his release of feelings that had hurt her.
Pulling her off of the bed, he sank to the floor, cradling her across
his lap. "I know you’re still in there somewhere," he said softly,
caressing her face and smoothing her hair. "I just need to find you."
Tom felt James’s presence even before he felt the gentle hand on his
shoulder.
"We need to get her to a hospital," he said urgently. "Can she walk?"
"I’ll carry her," Tom said quietly, holding her possessively. James
nodded and walked over to the small table by the bed. Picking up the
syringe in the narrow metal case lying there, he slipped both into his
pocket then turned and followed Tom out to the car.
~ 51 ~
"She’s still in shock but the sedative will help her sleep," Ed said
encouragingly.
Tom looked over at Tory, who was talking soothingly to Sloan as she and
Grace tried to coax her into bed.
"Why won’t she talk?" he asked anxiously. "The doctor at the hospital
said, that except for the bruises, she was fine."
"Whatever it was that Lewis programmed her to believe while she was
drugged was just too much for her to accept. Her mind just short
circuited," Ed explained.
"Is there anything I can do?" Tom asked, his eyes still on Sloan, now
lying quietly under a thick comforter.
"Just stay with her," Ed said squeezing his shoulder. "Try to
re-establish your connection with her.
"In the meantime, I’m going to the lab. James took the syringe Lewis
used, and Amanda is analyzing the drug right now."
Tom walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed and Tory and Grace
both touched him affectionately as they moved quietly past him toward
the door.
Reaching out, he tried to gently touch Sloan’s emotions, but the
sedative had only dampened her pain and the tangle of despair and anger
remained raw and ragged in her mind. As he smoothed her hair back from
her face, he was struck by how fragile she looked lying there and his
throat tightened painfully.
The feel of a small hand on his knee made Tom aware of Matt’s anxious
presence. Looking down into his dark eyes warm with compassion, Tom
nodded his head at the unspoken request he saw there. Edging closer,
Matt laid his hand on Sloan’s face and Tom was startled to see her move
her head slightly in response.
Reaching out to touch Matt’s emotional imprint, Tom sensed not only
*concern*affection* but a pure brightness that he had seen only once
before in another young boy. He had been sent him to kill him, but the
brightness and his mother’s impassioned pleas had made it impossible for
Tom to do so. And, now recognizing that same quality in Matt, he
wondered what made these two boys so special.
"She’s kinda like Sleeping Beauty, isn’t she?" Matt asked, moving back
to lean against Tom’s leg.
"Who?" Tom asked curiously, putting his hand gently on the young boy’s
shoulder.
"It’s a story Mama used to read me when I was little," he said.
Wrinkling his forehead in concentration, he frowned slightly. "I forget
exactly, but I think the princess is under this evil spell and every one
thinks she’s dead, but when the prince comes and kisses her, she wakes
up."
Looking up confidently at Tom, he smiled. "Maybe that’s all you need to
do."
"It’s a lot more complicated than that, Matt ...."
The young boy shook his head as he looked back at Sloan. "But she’s in
there and needs your help."
Tom’s hand tightened on Matt shoulder. "How do you know that?"
Matt turned back to Tom, his eyes wide. "I don’t know .... I just know.
I can tell she’s there but she’s really, really sad. She’s crying so
hard she can’t see that you’re here."
At the sound of his mother’s voice calling his name, Matt muttered,
"Gotta go," and hugged Tom quickly, then dashed out of the room, pausing
only to look back and smile warmly at Tom before closing the door behind
him.
Tom’s puzzlement over Matt’s comments was abruptly cut short by Sloan
throwing off the comforter and trying to get out of bed. Her soft cries
of anguish cut Tom deeply and he caught and held her tightly even as she
tried to push him away. He could feel her panic building as he
restrained her, and quickly letting go, he watched anxiously as she
stood and made her way unsteadily but determinedly to the bathroom.
Following closely, Tom watched in alarm as Sloan turned on the shower
and stepped in, fully clothed. As he watched her standing there,
letting the water stream down her face and body, he hesitated, unsure
of what to do.
Suddenly, she dropped her head and began to cry, the raw,
heart-wrenching sobs shaking her body. Calling her name, Tom reached in
to try and pull her out of the shower, but she pushed his hands away.
"No!" she gasped, her voice rough with pain. "I have to ... wash ...
this away."
Tom watched in bewilderment as Sloan grabbed the soap and began rubbing
it over her face and neck, then over her arms, oblivious to the shirt
she still wore. He tried again to pull her out, but she flailed her
arms at him and began pawing at her clothing, crying now in frustration
as the wet material stuck to her. "I have to get this off," she sobbed
harshly, her tears coursing hotly down her cheeks. "Lewis touched it."
As she fumbled with her shirt, she felt another pair of hands gently
push hers aside, unbutton the wet material and peel it off. She bowed
her head, letting the hot water pound hard against her back, and closed
her eyes as she surrendered the soap she had clutched tightly in her
hand.
"Let me help you, Sloan," Tom said softly, taking the soap and spreading
the fragrant lather over her shoulders. He paused as he saw the bruises
Lewis’s hands had left on her upper arms, but quickly controlled his
anger and instead concentrated on releasing *love*caring* as he
continued to lather her arms, running his strong hands back up to her
shoulders and neck.
Feeling her flinch and whimper softly, Tom gentled his touch as he
carefully smoothed the silky lather over the pale throat that Lewis had
so roughly savaged. "Don’t think about him, Sloan," he whispered
soothingly. "This is me touching you now. Washing away his touch, his
memory, his words."
Lowering his head, Tom gently rubbed his cheek against hers as he
gathered her into his arms. Reaching out to touch her emotional
imprint, he eased into the tangle of pain and loss. Carefully following
the bright hot threads of anguish, Tom gasped as he realized the cause
of her despair.
Pulling back, he reached up to cradle her face in both of his hands. He
stared into her eyes, knowing that she saw him but didn’t recognize him.
"I’m here, Sloan," he said urgently. "I’m not dead .... I’m here,
with you.
"Please," he pleaded, bending down to kiss her cheek. "Come back to
me."
He moved his lips against her skin, warm and wet from the water
streaming over them both, and pulled her closer, slowly and carefully
releasing his love and passion for her. As he gently kissed her mouth,
he closed his eyes tightly and fought his own fears of life without her.
Tom had never held Sloan so closely or intimately without her returning
his love and affection, and the lack of her response now was almost
physically painful to him. He tightened his embrace as he kissed her
deeply, desperately willing her to feel his presence. And as his mouth
moved urgently on hers, he tasted the familiar sweetness of her, mixed
with the faint saltiness he recognized with a start came from his own
tears.
Sloan fought her way painfully through the haze of horrifying memories.
The rage at losing Tom, the sound of Lewis’s voice, his words .... his
touch .... his feelings ....
NO!
Tom’s touch .... Tom’s feelings ..... Tom’s *love* ....
Shaking and gasping for breath, Sloan moved in his embrace, wrapping
her arms around him fiercely as she passionately returned his kiss.
Tom raised his head abruptly and caught his breath as he found himself
looking into green eyes brilliant with life and dark with desire for
him.
"I can’t believe it’s you," she whispered raggedly, reaching up to touch
his face, her fingertips trailing across his lips. "I thought you
were..."
"Here," he said firmly, capturing her hand and pressing it against his
cheek. "I’m here, Sloan."
~ 52 ~
"Sloan, where do you think you’re going?" Tom said in mild exasperation.
He had toweled her dry, wrapped her in the comforter on the bed, and was
just getting ready to finish drying himself off when she suddenly seemed
determined to get out of bed.
"I need my comb," she announced, sitting up and trying to untangle
herself from the comforter.
Tom stared at her blankly.
"If I don’t comb my hair right now, I’ll never be able to get these
knots out," she said, showing him the tangle of curls made worse by
his energetic efforts to towel her hair dry.
"You just stay there," he said, holding his hand up to stem any further
argument. "I’ll get it"
Retrieving her comb, Tom walked over to the bed and sat down, pulling
her, quilt and all, onto his lap. Ignoring her half-hearted protests, he
began to gently comb her damp hair, patiently working out the tangles
and knots.
Sloan murmured contentedly and closed her eyes as she enjoyed the
soothing touch of his hands on her hair, and the solid warmth of his
body so close to hers. The wonderful scent of him, and the familiar,
comforting feel of his strong, loving presence surrounded her. Taking a
deep breath, Sloan slowly exhaled, sighing with relief as the last
vestiges of the pain and despair that had threatened to consume her
receded.
"Remember the first time you brushed my hair?" Sloan asked softly.
Tom’s hand faltered at the memory, and Sloan smiled to herself. "Your
hands were so gentle," she said softly. Leaning back against his broad
chest, she turned her head and brought her mouth close to his cheek.
"It always amazes me how gentle you can be," she whispered, her breath
warmly caressing his skin. "When you touch me, or hold me..." She
tilted her head to the side and gently nuzzled his cheek and jaw.
"Or make love to me," she murmured, her mouth moving warmly against his
neck, making him shiver involuntarily.
"Sloan," he began, his voice ragged with his effort to hold onto his
rising emotions. "You’ve been through a lot .... you really need to lie
down ..."
Wrapping her arms around his neck, she brushed her lips lightly across
his ear and whispered, "I will, if you will."
Moving away, she pulled off the comforter surrounding her. Sloan could
feel Tom’s desire flare sharply as his eyes traveled over her body but
she also sensed his hesitation. Seeing the concern clouding his pale
eyes, Sloan reached out and took his hand, bringing it up to her cheek.
"When Lewis drugged me, he held me and touched me," she said, her voice
faltering, "and he made me think it was you, saying goodbye.
"I don’t want those memories," she pleaded. "I need to remember *your*
touch, Tom" she said suddenly urgent. "Not Lewis’s.
"I need to know it’s you ," she whispered fiercely, pulling him into her
arms, "... loving me."
~ 53 ~
"We got it!" Ed exclaimed jubilantly, bursting through the kitchen door,
James and Amanda following closely behind him.
Walter and Ray looked up from the papers strewn over the kitchen table.
"And what might that be?" Walter asked mildly, adjusting his glasses.
"The antidote to Lewis’s drug," Ed said excitedly, holding the small
vial in front of Walter’s face. "It will allow us to get through to
Sloan and help her recover."
"Excellent!" Walter said, smiling in satisfaction. "Tory and Grace said
she was sleeping when they left her with Tom."
Glancing over at James and Amanda, Ed paused as he noticed the startled
look they were exchanging with each other.
"What’s wrong?" Ed asked. "I thought you said this would be safe to use
on Sloan."
"It is, it’s just not necessary now," James said, an amused edge to his
voice.
"What are you talking about?" Ed said irritably. Stepping into the
hallway, he headed determinedly toward Sloan’s bedroom.
Suddenly both James and Amanda were blocking his way. Ed stopped and
looked from one to the other. James returned his gaze steadily, the
corners of his mouth curved up in a small smile, while Amanda grinned at
him.
"What?" he blurted in annoyance.
"We’re trying to tell you that Tom and Sloan seem to have worked things
out themselves," Amanda said, arching her eyebrow suggestively.
"How would you know ...?" Ed began. Then remembering their sensing
abilities, his protestations sputtered to a dead stop.
"Oh," he said shortly, the color beginning to rise to his cheeks.
"Ummph. I think I’ll go see what Ray and Walter are doing," he mumbled,
turning on his heel and walking quickly away.
"We should go too, Amanda," James said quietly, moving toward the door.
"James," Walter interrupted urgently, rushing out into the hallway.
"Could you take a look at these printouts? I think we’ve got a problem
with Kewley’s Comet."
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