And then the new jeans.
Last, but not least, the new panties landed on top of the heap of clothing.
The kiss got deeper. Hungrier. She freed her mouth and, feeling very daring, she reached up and slipped off Jack’s glasses. There was something wildly intimate about the small act; something very personal.
Without the lenses, Jack’s eyes were even more fierce. Fire and ice.
She unfastened the waistband of his trousers and lowered the zipper. Everything about him, including his erection, was fierce. And exciting. Very, very exciting. She wrapped her fingers around him.
He uttered a low, rumbling growl, fit his hands to her waist and lifted her up off her feet. He carried her across the room with quick, urgent strides. She closed her eyes, sure that she was going to land on the bed.
She was shocked when she felt the unyielding wall against her back. Her eyes snapped open.
“What on earth?” she said, disoriented.
“Wrap your legs around me,” he ordered in a husky whisper.
Bewildered but too dazzled to ask any questions, she obeyed.
He braced her against the wall.
“Hang on,” he said.
Anchoring her with one arm, he used his free hand to stroke her until she was melting; until she dug her nails into his shoulders. He guided himself partway into her.
She gasped and closed her eyes against the tight, full sensation. Slowly he eased in and out, each time going a little deeper. It was maddening. Desperate, she tried to take control of the rhythm and ride him. But he was the one in command of the situation. Everything inside her was squeezed to the breaking point.
Her release struck, shattering her senses. She gave a soft, astonished cry. He surged into her one last time, finally filling her completely.
He put his mouth against the curve of her shoulder to muffle his roar of satisfaction.
CHAPTER FORTY
“I’ll take the first shift,” Winter said.
Jack was on his back, propped up against a couple of pillows. He had one arm folded behind his head.
“You took the first shift last night,” he said.
“You should sleep first because you are relaxed and ready to get some rest.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Everyone knows that men find sex very relaxing. You are living proof.”
“I am?”
“Just look at yourself.” She sat up amid the tumbled bedding and held one sheet over her breasts. “A short time ago you were all wired and ready to go back to work. Then we had wild sex and now you look ready to fall asleep.”
He eyed her through half-closed eyes. “Are you saying that you’re not sleepy?”
“I’m feeling energized at the moment.”
“I can see that.”
She thought he would refuse. Instead, he inclined his head once.
“All right,” he said. “Give me three hours and then wake me.”
“You need more than three hours of rest.”
“So do you. Wake me in three hours and we’ll discuss the matter further.”
She had pushed him far enough, she decided. The man could be stubborn.
“Okay,” she said. She got up and stood beside the bed. “Go to sleep. I’ll wake you in three hours.”
He did not argue any more. Instead, he turned onto his side and closed his eyes. She gathered up her clothes, switched off the bedside lamp and went to the connecting door. There she paused.
“It isn’t because you’re grateful to me, is it?” she asked softly.
“What are you talking about?” he mumbled into the pillow.
“You said that I was your passion. I just wanted to be sure that it’s not just because you’re grateful to me. Because I helped you get control of the lucid dreaming and the sleepwalking.”
“For the record, I don’t sleep with people just because I happen to feel grateful to them,” he said. He was still talking into the pillow.
“What do you do when you feel grateful to someone?”
“I write a nice thank-you note and I email it. Can I go to sleep now?”
“Yes,” she said.
She went on into the other room. She had not received a thank-you note by email, she reminded herself. That was a good sign. She would think positive.
* * *
• • •
The following day, Jack was in the passenger seat of the rental car when his phone rang. He glanced at it and saw an unfamiliar number.
“It’s a Cassidy Springs number,” he said.
“Someone from the spa?” Winter suggested.
She was driving so that he could review his notes before the visit to Tazewell Global. They were on Interstate 5, heading north to San Francisco.
“Maybe,” he said.
He took the call.
“This is Gail Bloom,” Gail said, her voice quivering. “I need to talk to Winter. Please. It’s really important. I tried her number but it threw me straight into voice mail. You gave me your card, so I decided to try the number on it.”
Jack thought about Winter’s phone, which he had insisted she ditch in the storage locker on the grounds that it might have been hacked. There was no need to explain that to Gail.
“Winter is driving, Gail,” he said. “I’ll put you on speaker.”
“No,” Gail yelped. “Don’t do that. I need to talk to her privately.”
“In that case, you’ll have to wait until we can find a place to pull off the interstate.”
“Hurry,” Gail said.
Jack signaled to Winter. There was an off-ramp coming up fast. She took it and found a place to pull over. Jack changed places with her, got behind the wheel and headed back toward the interstate. Winter buckled herself into the passenger seat and picked up the phone.
“What’s going on, Gail?” she asked. She listened intently for a moment. “All right, slow down. Tell me exactly what happened. Yes, I heard you. Yes, I can be in Cassidy Springs tonight, but let’s talk about this. No, wait, don’t hang up—”
Winter sighed and ended the connection. “Gail sounded scared. She says she wants to meet me tonight at the Cassidy Springs Wellness Spa at nine. She has something important to tell me about Raleigh Forrester.”
“Why does she want to meet at the spa?”
“She said she wants to get together in a public location where she can be sure there are a lot of people around. She’s very frightened, Jack.”
“Why would there be a lot of people at the spa at nine o’clock at night?”
“The spa closes at eight but there are over half a dozen trendy bars and restaurants on that street,” Winter said. “There are always a lot of people around on the sidewalks at night in that neighborhood.”
“I don’t like it.”
“Gail Bloom is a very nice person,” Winter said, “and what’s more, she’s seriously scared. If Raleigh Forrester is involved in this thing, we need to know how and why.”
“Huh.”
“This is a break,” Winter said firmly. “We can’t ignore it. You’re the one who told Gail to get in touch if she had anything she wanted to tell us. Well, now she has gotten in touch. You know as well as I do that we have to follow up.”
He thought about it.
“I still don’t like it,” he said.
Winter cleared her throat. “She, uh, said I’m to come alone.”
“Not going to happen.”
“I know her, Jack. I could tell she was sincere. She’s really worried about me.”
“I worry about you, too. That’s why you’re not going into that spa alone. And just so you know, if I don’t like the looks of the setup, neither one of us will be going in tonight.”
“Okay, okay,” she said. “But I’m telling you, Gail is
genuinely frightened. I think she believes that she’s in danger.”
He gave that some thought. “Was she calling from the spa?”
“No, she was outside on a street somewhere. Jack, I think we need to do some more research on Raleigh Forrester.”
“I agree. I’ll take a closer look at him after we pay a call to Tazewell Global.”
* * *
• • •
That afternoon they stood in the lobby of the forty-story office tower that housed the headquarters of Tazewell Global. The place was busy because a number of other businesses operated out of the same building.
“I’m sorry,” the receptionist said. “But Tazewell Global is closed for a month. Did you have an appointment?”
“Closed?” Jack said. “The entire business just shut down for a month?”
“Tazewell Global is not a huge firm,” the receptionist said. “It occupies only half a floor. I was told that the CEO gave the staff a month’s vacation—at least what’s left of the staff.”
“What’s left of it?” Jack asked.
The receptionist lowered her voice. “I hear that a lot of people were let go a few weeks ago.”
Outside on the street Winter looked at Jack. “You’re going to try to get into the Tazewell Global offices, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” he said.
“You could get arrested, you know.”
“Ninety-six percent probability that I won’t get caught. I’m not much good with a gun but I do know how to get through locked doors.”
“Where did you learn that skill?”
“The Internet.”
Winter sighed. “When are you going to do it?”
“First thing in the morning,” Jack said. “It will be easier to slip into the crowd of office workers who will be arriving to start the day.”
“Maybe we’ll get something useful from Gail tonight.”
“Maybe,” Jack said.
He did not sound hopeful.
“You really don’t think Raleigh Forrester is involved in this thing, do you?” Winter asked.
“No,” Jack said. “But it’s possible that Zane is using him.”
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
The sidewalks on the tree-lined street in front of the Cassidy Springs Wellness Spa were crowded with an assortment of stylishly dressed people coming and going from the various eateries and bars. Music spilled out of the open doors and windows of the establishments.
The only place on the street that was closed was the Cassidy Springs Wellness Spa. The sign was illuminated but the windows were dark.
Winter did her best to stay cool and calm; to stay focused on the coming meeting with Gail, but she could no longer suppress the unnerving frissons of anxiety that iced the back of her neck. The ominous sensation had been growing stronger during the evening. Jack had insisted on keeping an eye on the spa for the past few hours. They had watched the front door from the vantage point of a couple of different cafés.
Gail had not left with the rest of the staff when the spa closed at eight. As far as they could tell she was still inside, but if that was the case, she was waiting for them in the dark.
There were a handful of vehicles parked in the small lot in front. Technically, the lot was reserved for clients of the spa but after it closed people felt free to ignore the posted signs.
Shortly before nine Winter and Jack walked up to the glass doors of the lobby. The shades had been pulled, so it was impossible to see into the darkened space. Jack tried the door. It swung open, revealing a slice of the shadowed lobby.
Winter raised her voice. “Gail?”
The muffled explosion rumbled through the building. Glass shattered somewhere inside.
The screaming started a heartbeat later.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
The panic-stricken cries were muffled but Winter recognized the woman’s voice immediately.
“Door’s locked. I can’t get it open. Help me. Someone please help me.”
“That’s Gail,” Winter said. She raised her voice. “It’s me, Gail. Winter. Jack is with me. Which room are you in?”
“Women’s Retreat.” Gail’s muffled voice was barely audible. “I can’t get the door open. Something is blocking it. Help me, please.”
Jack was speaking to the emergency operator, reporting the fire and the fact that there was someone inside the building. He ended the call and looked at Winter.
“Which room is the Women’s Retreat?” he asked.
Winter pointed down a shadowy corridor. “Left at the end of the hall. The Women’s Retreat chamber is the first door on the right.”
“Stay outside on the street,” Jack said. “The fire department will be arriving soon. There’s a crowd gathering. Make sure you have other people around you at all times.”
He did not wait for a response. He started down the hall.
“You might need help,” Winter said.
“No. Get out and stay out.”
He disappeared into the shadows.
Flames appeared at one of the windows.
Winter wanted to go after him but common sense told her that would be foolish. He needed to stay focused on rescuing Gail.
She retreated into the parking lot where a number of people were already gathered. Others poured out of the nearby restaurants and bars to watch the excitement.
The sirens were closer now. The first fire truck was rolling down the street toward the spa.
Winter edged backward without paying much attention to where she was going. She could not take her eyes off the entrance of the spa. Panic sleeted through her in icy waves. There was no sign of Jack or Gail.
“I wonder what started the fire,” a woman said.
“I heard the spa is in financial trouble,” a man responded. “What do you want to bet the owner torched the place to collect the insurance?”
Winter focused on the doorway of the spa, willing Jack to reappear. At last there was a shift in the shadows of the entrance and then she saw him emerge from the doorway. Relief soared through her. He had Gail draped in his arms.
A fire truck roared into the parking lot. Firefighters swarmed off the vehicle and took charge. A medic ran toward Jack and Gail.
Winter allowed herself a deep breath. She was vaguely aware of someone moving up behind her.
“Looks like we’ve got a real hero here,” the woman said. “That’s our story. See if you can get him on video, Sam.”
“On it,” a man said.
Winter realized she was standing in front of a reporter and a cameraman. She started to move out of the way but someone slapped a palm across her mouth. Simultaneously she felt a sharp, stinging sensation in the curve of her shoulder. A strange weight settled on her senses, dragging them under.
She tried to struggle; tried to shout for help. But it was too late. The world was already fading.
She thought she heard the reporter say something to some bystanders.
“She’s okay. She fainted. Probably shock. We’ll take her to the medics’ van.”
Winter tried to protest; tried to explain that she had not fainted. Tried to tell someone that she had been drugged. But she could no longer summon the energy required for speech.
The night closed in, hard and fast.
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
“They’ve got her,” Jack said. “That’s what this was all about. And I let them do it.”
He had a death grip on the cell phone. It was a wonder the device did not crumple in his fist. It took every ounce of control he possessed to fight the hellfire that threatened to sweep through him. If he allowed the rage to consume him, he would be of no use to Winter.
He was sitting behind the wheel of the rental car watching the firefighters extinguish the last of the spa fire. Destroying the business had not been the objective
, he thought. The fire was meant to be a distraction. Grabbing Winter had been the goal all along. Maybe they had hoped to take him as well. After all, they’d had no way of knowing that he would go into the building to find Gail.
“You had a decision to make,” Anson said. “You made the choice to save a woman who might have died if you hadn’t gone in. When it comes to this kind of situation, you don’t have a lot of options. You make the decision and you live with it because it was the best decision you could make at the time.”
Jack knew Anson had been forced to make his own hard choice on that long-ago night when Zane had torched the cult’s compound. There had been no way to save everyone. Anson had made the split-second decision to try to rescue the children in the blazing barn. The mothers, most of whom had been locked inside the women’s quarters, had perished.
Anson rarely talked about that hellish night but they all knew that he sometimes relived it in his dreams.
“Okay,” Jack said. He took a deep, centering breath. The decision had been made. Now he had to figure it out from here. “Okay.”
“You’ve collected a lot of new information about Quinton Zane in the past couple of days, but you’ve been running,” Anson said. “Now’s the time to slow down and put it all together.”
That was Anson for you, Jack thought. He didn’t dance around the edges of a problem with a lot of false happy talk. He went straight to the bottom line. And he was right. It was time to go down into Ice Town. Time to find the footprints of the killer and follow him into the darkness. Time to think like the human monster who had kidnapped Winter.
Jack used his free hand to open the console. The small slab of black obsidian gleamed in the darkness. He picked up the slice of volcanic glass and held it in his palm. Frozen fire. His key to finding Winter.
“I agree,” he said. “But there’s something else I have to do first. In the meantime, tell Xavier, Max and Cabot to keep working on the Tazewell Global lead. I need everything they can find on Grayson Fitzgerald Tazewell, his business and his family background. Every single fact. Every rumor. I want it all. Send the data to me as it comes in. Don’t wait to verify it.”