CHAPTER THIRTY-three
Thirty seconds. That’s how long Sterling waited after Becca walked into that store before he went after her—planned, counted-out seconds that were the longest of his life. It took him all of ten more to clear the entrance and a few rows of dresses, to draw a hidden weapon, and yank open the curtain to room number two.
Sabrina sat, legs crossed, lounging in a red velvet chair. Becca, stiff and prim, sat in a matching chair beside her, thankfully safe.
Able to breathe again, his gaze swept to the ceiling, the walls, the large mirror mounted on the wall, before they latched onto Sabrina again.
“I’ve always enjoyed a good ménage with a big gun,” Sabrina purred. She pointed a red-tipped nail. “But shut the curtain before we get started.”
He kept the gun on Sabrina. “Becca,” he said.
She pushed to her feet and pulled the curtain, then stood close to him, as if she wanted to hang on if he decided to leave.
Sabrina sighed. “You two are clearly suffering from some sort of paranoia, so I’ll get right to it, and let you go melt down somewhere that’s not here. I gave your girlfriend a card with five of my dealer’s names. A show of good faith.”
Sterling cast Becca a sideways look, and she held up an index card.
Sabrina continued. “I can give you Iceman, his warehouse, his dealers, and his users. You give me what I asked for—protection without consequences. Tell your boss he has twenty-four hours to decide.”
She pushed to her feet, and Sterling stepped to the side, giving her space. She paused, too close, and added, “Don’t come back here. I’ll call you. If you get me killed, who’s going to give you all those juicy secrets?”
She slipped behind the curtain and disappeared. Sterling’s instincts were screaming. Whatever had gone down here, it was more of the “not what it seems” variety. He had a bad feeling—the kind of bad that made nightmares like fairy tales. He grabbed Becca’s arm. They were going to the nearest exit and wind-walking out of here.
No one inside the Renegades camp except Becca had ever seen Dorian, so the kid had walked by the throngs of Renegades and casino workers unnoticed and came straight to the executive office of the hotel where Tad waited for him.
Tad watched as Dorian meditated, eyes rolled back in his head, and waited for the announcement that Rebecca Burns was dead. The far left wall displayed camera footage of the dressing room, and Tad was starting to get antsy.
Sabrina had left the room, and now, so were Sterling and the Burns woman. Tad would have preferred to shoot the bitch from a distance, but any further violence at the hotel after the ICE fatalities could bring unwanted attention from military operations.
Abruptly, Dorian’s eyes rolled back into position. “I cannot reach her mind from this distance without an emotional imprint to track,” he said, speaking to both Tad and Adam, who was on speakerphone.
“She’s headed for the door,” Tad told Adam. “Say the word, and I’ll order my men to shoot her.”
“I will go to her,” Dorian said, already headed to the door.
Holy shit. If anything happened to that kid, not only would he lose his abilities, but Adam would kill him. “Dorian! No!” It was too late. Dorian was out the door, too powerful for Tad to stop.
“Put your shield up,” Sterling ordered, whisking Becca to the back of the casino near the door he’d established with Caleb as their safety zone—where backup would be waiting.
“I thought—”
“Don’t argue,” he ordered. Every second she was unprotected was a risk.
“You think Dorian is here,” she said anxiously.
“I don’t know what I think,” he said. “Other than my instincts are screaming, and when they scream, I listen.”
“No,” she said. “I’m not putting up my shield.”
He stopped dead in his tracks in the protection of a crowd and glared. “What do you mean you aren’t putting it up?”
“I want this to end, Sterling,” she said. “I want it over. We walk out that door, my shields down, and we don’t wind-walk to safety either. End this. No one is safe while Dorian is free. We can only hope your instincts are screaming because we have a chance to catch him.”
Sterling stood there, the sound of slot machines and screams melting into an abyss. No—he would grab her and wind-walk her to safety the minute they exited.
She reached up and pressed her hand to his chest, as if she sensed the decision he was going to make. “We are trying to stop a monster before he can get his grip on the world. This is the time for you to learn to deal with reaching beyond your protectiveness for me. If you can’t be objective under these circumstances, then you were right to question yourself and us, because you never will be.”
Clarity came to Sterling. She was wrong. He would do the same for anyone. Okay, with a little more conviction for Becca, there was no denying that. But he saved lives. He took risks so other people didn’t get hurt. He grabbed her hand. They were getting out of here. She yelped as he tugged her forward, pushed through the crowd. The instant they were away from the entrance cameras, they were riding the wind.
“Wait!” Becca demanded as he shoved open the door only to find her crumbling to her knees.
“Becca,” he yelled, bending down to pick her up, only to have a piercing pain rip through his head. “Ah. God.” In some distant place, he could hear Becca whimpering, hear people screaming. Somehow, he pulled himself to a sitting position, and holy shit, Jesus help them, found bodies lying everywhere.
Becca had gone fetal, and suddenly, a young boy was standing above him. Instantly Sterling was captured in the boy’s mesmerizingly lethal stare—pale silver, rather than black.
“Sterling!” came Damion’s shout from behind. The boy lifted his hand, and glass shattered—a fierce blast that collided with the pain in his head and made him gag. But somehow, he threw himself over the top of Becca. Screams permeated the air then utter silence. A heavy blanketing force replaced the glass. Holy crap. Becca was right. This kid was a nightmare. The only people coming to help them were coming from inside the casino. He wasn’t sure that was possible; there could be a barrier there too.
Sterling hunkered over and reached for the nicotine weapon in his belt, when bullets would have felt a whole lot more comforting. So would the strength to lift the weapon. The screech in his head was depleting him, zapping his energy.
“Enough, Dorian,” came Caleb’s voice.
“Uncle?”
Uncle, meaning Caleb. Even in his current state of near insane pain, Sterling heard the whimsical fascination in Dorian’s voice about Caleb—the child beneath the evil—with an idol, of sorts.
“Have you decided to join us now?” Dorian asked. “Father will be pleased to see you.”
“Stop hurting the woman,” Caleb ordered. “And we will go see your father together.”
Sterling could feel Becca shaking beneath him, sobbing. And he knew if Caleb could help her, he would. He must have used whatever mind juice he had to get here in the first place.
But Sterling saw opportunity and distraction when it presented itself, despite the screeching in his head. He told himself to fire now and willed his hand to life. Shoot the gun while Dorian was occupied. He had to fire the gun.
“I don’t like to disappoint Father,” Dorian said.
“If you bring me to your father,” Caleb said. “I promise you, Dorian, he will forgive all else.”
Sterling aimed the gun and fired over and over, but at the same moment, Dorian said, “I don’t think so.” He lifted his hand, and that barrier that had replaced the glass came down on top of them, crushing Sterling and Becca with the force of an eighteen-wheeler.
And then, suddenly, it was gone—as if Dorian or maybe Caleb had somehow destroyed it. Sterling gasped for air and reached for Becca, turned her over, and found no pulse. He screamed in horror. Frantically, for the second time since meeting her, he began CPR.
In his peripheral vision, he was aware of Dorian on the ground, proof the nicotine bullets had not only worked they’d crumbled the wall Dorian had created. Damion grabbed Dorian and faded into the wind as Caleb and Adam came toe-to-toe. Michael stepped to Caleb’s side. Then Marcus stepped to Adam’s side before shifting into Tad.
Sterling turned away and focused on only one thing—Becca. “No!” The word roared from his lungs, the pain and the impossibility of losing her. He should never have let her come here without the complete bond that would have protected her, made her stronger, safer, able to heal on a level beyond what ICE could give her.
Desperation rose in him, and he grabbed a piece of glass, sliced his hand, and then hers—pressed them together and willed her to life through the completion of their bond. He straddled her, holding her to him, begging her to live. “Come on baby. Come on.”
And then, finally, she coughed and blinked. He had no idea why, but she was crying when she sat up and flung her arms around him.
“Tell me you’re okay,” he whispered. “Please. Tell me you’re okay.”
“Yes,” she said. “I’m okay. Did we get Dorian? Did it work?”
“Damion got him,” he said, amazed time and time again at just how brave she was. “I hope that means it’s over.”
She wet her lips. “Did you—did we?”
“Complete our bond? You bet we did, and you’re stuck with me now.”
A small smile touched her lips. “And you’re stuck with me too.”
He kissed her, scooped her up, and turned to find Caleb and Michael returning. Sirens sounded—raw and grinding, dozens of them.
Around him people were sitting up, waking from their unconscious state, thankfully alive. Sterling could see the headlines tomorrow. “Terrorist bomb set off in casino.” Or “Angry gambler goes ballistic.” Either way, there was a mess to be dealt with.
“It’s over,” Caleb announced. “Adam’s not foolish enough to bring down the wrath of the army, or the Renegades, while he’s not in a position to win. It’s the big picture, rule the world shit, to him.”
“Mark my word though,” Michael said. “He’ll come for Dorian, and sooner, rather than later. But for now, their production of ICE is officially halted.”
Caleb looked at Becca. “You were very brave.”
“Yeah, you were,” Sterling murmured, staring down at her with more than love—he felt pride and admiration.
She smiled up at him. “See what happens when you listen to what I have to say.”
He laughed, knowing they had plenty of time to argue about who was in charge. Right now, he simply wanted to take her to Kelly and make sure she was safe. And then take her to bed and keep her there by his side for an eternity—or as long as she would have him.
Adam returned to Zodius Nation, very aware of his son’s absence by his side, but he shared a mental link with Dorian, and through him he would influence Caleb to join him. The world had a way of shaping destiny, and today was no different. Destiny was definitely afoot.
He’d left Tad back at the casino, squirming like a pathetic ant, begging forgiveness, trying to figure out how to maintain his Marcus identity without ICE.
Adam wasn’t shortsighted enough to prematurely kill Marcus, though he wasn’t about to share the details with Tad. Torture Marcus? Of course. Kill him? Time would tell. First Adam would evaluate his usefulness. His influence with those Adam wished to control.
He found his wife Ava in the women’s quarters, lounging on a velvet chair in the center of the room. Chocolates and fruits adorned long tables, roses in every corner. Human females, her followers, surrounded her, eager to be future mothers of their new “perfect” lineage. Ava’s ability to seduce them with her mind so that they would seduce his men with their bodies was arousing. But then, everything about his voluptuous Lifebond aroused him.
He sauntered to the lounge chair, the women around him all but falling all over themselves. Their king had arrived. He sat down and pulled Ava close. “Dorian has penetrated the Renegades’ camp.”
Apprehension slid over her lovely, heart-shaped face. “You are sure that Caleb will try to rehabilitate him rather than kill him?”
“He is a child,” Adam said. “Of course he will try rehabilitation. And he will believe he has succeeded.” He kissed her. “All is well, my love. And with time, it will be even better.”
Sabrina tossed the duffel bag over her shoulder and rushed down her apartment stairs. She couldn’t find Tad, and she was pretty sure, based on the mess at the hotel, his plan had gone badly. Which meant Adam would kill him and anyone near him. She had to get away. Quickly.
She exited the back of the building, the lot dark, a fine mist of rain starting to fall. Nerves jittery in her stomach, her heels clicking on the pavement, she all but ran to her car and yanked open the door when headlights shined on her. She stilled, feeling the squeeze in her chest of certain death.
All of a sudden, a car was there, a shiny black sedan. The back window slid down. A distinguished man appeared, his hair laced with gray, his features shadowy in the inky darkness.
“Hello, Sabrina,” he said.
“Who are you?” she asked, wetting her lips nervously.
“A friend who wants to help you,” he said.
“Help me how?”
“Stop depending on men with big promises and no ability to deliver.”
She snorted. “And I suppose you can?”
“I’m the one who brings the right people together with the right solutions, even if they think it’s a coincidence. It never is. I’ve been watching you, Sabrina.” Moonlight shimmered across the twitch of his lips. “I can make you the first woman to enter the GTECH program—the ‘Madame’ of many others who will become like you.”
“How?” she asked. No more running, no more hiding, no more wanting and wishing.
“All you have to do is come with me,” he said, popping the door open and disappearing inside.
She looked at her broken-down Toyota and thought of the slim wad of cash in her purse that would last maybe a year. She climbed into the car and pulled the door shut. He wore an army green dress uniform, and she knew enough to know he was high-ranking. She glanced at a medal on his jacket and read the name.
Then she smiled, soft and sexy. She was cool with military men. She was cool with anyone who gave her the power, once and for all. “I’m all yours, Captain.”
“That’s General, Sabrina. General Powell.”
Near sundown, two days after their Lifebonding was complete, Becca and Sterling were in Houston on her front porch, watching as Damion trotted from the moving truck to the porch and grabbed a box. “That’ll do it. We’re off.” He smiled at Becca. “See you in the city.”
As in Sunrise City, the Renegades’ headquarters, and her new home. Becca smiled and leaned into Sterling. “See you.”
When the truck pulled away, Sterling turned her into his arms and kissed her. Becca ran her hand down his cheek. “I’ve been thinking about you being a little more human than the other GTECHs.” He stiffened and frowned. She frowned right back. “Don’t look like that. Don’t you see? It’s just like we thought. There are no coincidences. You had to be as you were, so you could be my anchor and help me learn to control my abilities.” Her voice softened. She loved this man so much. “You really do complete me, Sterling. It’s the most amazing feeling.”
Black eyes stared back at her, though to everyone else they were teal. After their bond, he no longer needed his lenses to camouflage their color, and he no longer had wind-walking limitations.
“There’s something I need to ask you,” he said softly.
A smile froze on her lips as she recognized the sudden tension in him. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
The wind lifted around them, and suddenly they were on a balcony of a high-rise hotel, and she was facing a rail with Sterling nestled close behind her, miles of Vegas city lights around them, twinkling in spectacular glory.
“It’s gorgeous,” she said, leaning into him. “Where are we? What building is this?”
“The View Hotel and Casino,” he said, softly, too softly. “In the honeymoon suite.”
“What?” she turned in his arms to face him, and he went down on his knee. Her heart thundered in her chest, and her eyes watered. “What are you doing?”
He produced a small velvet box. “You didn’t exactly get to pick when we Lifebonded, but you can choose if you live your life by my side. So Becca, I would very much like to take you to the chapel and make you my wife. Or anywhere in the world you want to go, whenever you want. I’m impatient though. I want you to be mine—tonight. I want to know you choose me, just like I choose you.” He flipped the box open, displaying a single, elegant white diamond that would rival all the lights around them.
Becca bent down in front of him. “I choose you. Yes, tonight. I love you so much, Sterling, it hurts sometimes.” Relief and happiness washed across his features, and she realized he’d been nervous. How could he possibly have doubted she would say yes?
He slipped the ring on her finger. “You like it? Because if you don’t—”
She kissed him. “I love it and you.”
Long minutes later, they were inside the room, stripping off each other’s clothes. They went down on the bed together, Sterling on top of her, big and strong, and perfect in every way. “I thought we were going to the chapel?” she teased.
He slid inside her, stretched her deliciously, filling her in ways she’d never known possible. “I booked us for midnight.” He brought her finger to his mouth, kissing the diamond that said she was his. “I figured we’d need some time to celebrate our engagement.” He brushed his lips over hers. “When we come back, we’ll celebrate the wedding.” And he proceeded to show her just how well he understood the meaning of sin in the city.