?No. I?ve heard little about the other side, this Doomsday Brethren. My source says they?re good, but they?re fighting Mathias, who claims to be battling for equality. Yet he raped a woman until she was little more than a broken shell. But does his evil automatically make the Doomsday Brethren good? If I had to guess, I?d say the soldiers were Mathias?s. If he cares so little as to repeatedly rape a woman, I doubt he?s above kidnapping a few well-trained soldiers and using them in his army.?
Chloe hesitated. ?Do you really think this is all true, not merely this terrorized woman?s hallucinations??
?It?s possible, I suppose. But there?s enough fact here to make me pause. Call me if you hear any more.?
They rang off, and Sydney jotted down a few notes? which quickly grew frustrating. She had another story to crank out this week on the magical war, and she wanted it to be about Chloe?s information, slanted accurately, but she had so many questions. How did these soldiers fit into the grand scheme of the war? Had they been used for magical purposes? How were they persuaded or forced to fight and give their lives for this cause? Perhaps she could run with the facts as they were, but the pieces of the puzzle didn?t fit. She needed to talk to her source again and see what else the witch might know.
Sydney placed a quick call to Aquarius. When her assistant didn?t answer, she left a voicemail, apologizing for the interruption of her holiday and asking for a ring back indicating whether Aquarius?s guest would talk again.
Not long after she placed the phone back in the cradle, she felt a presence in the doorway.
Caden.
?Good morning,? she said, forcing a businesslike tone. ?Did you need something? I?m off to a busy start, so spit it out.?
He stepped in and shut the door behind him, planting his fists on her desk and leaning closer. ?Sydney, I?m??
?Stop.? She put up a hand, refusing to reveal that the sight of him had her blood pumping and her heart aching. If they talked about last night, she?d risk tears. ?I just have one question: Why did you come over last night? What made you leave your flat in the middle of the night and come all the way crosstown to mine? Was it the sex or something else??
He paused, scrubbing a hand over his face. A weariness she?d never seen dragged down his eyes, mouth, shoulders. For a moment, Sydney?s heart went out to him, until she reminded herself that she couldn?t feel for him and keep her heart unscathed. Something about Caden called to her, and she wasn?t certain he suffered the same affliction. He?d risen from her bed, dressed, left, and as far as she could see, suffered no side effects other than lack of sleep. It wasn?t as if she was looking for a down-on-one-knee proposal, just the truth.
?Pure impulse. I was attracted to you from the first. I tried to keep to myself because we work together, my life is complicated now, and I can?t give you a tomorrow. But I came over last night because I could no longer stay away. I tried to talk myself out of going to your flat, but every moment I was away from you, I became more obsessed with making love to you.?
Had that been the magical diary compelling him to come to my door? Sydney swallowed. No. It was just an old red book, right? This had to be about her story. She believed in magic, yes. But not involving her.
?Did you come because you wanted to persuade me to divulge my magical source??
?No, but if you?d like to make me a full partner in this story, I?d love that.?
?And what, you thought being my partner in the bedroom would help you get there faster??
?Damn it! I dreamed of you, literally, in the precise lingerie you wore for me last night. I dreamed of tearing it off, of the sweet taste of your breasts, of your body clutching my cock, of the groans you made when you came for me. How the bloody hell was I supposed to stay away from you after that??
Oh God. Sydney sat back with a gulp. ?Would you . . . um, say you felt compelled??
?Yes. But I take responsibility for mucking up everything.? Caden stopped, leaned closer, peering at her as if trying to unravel a puzzle. ?Wait. Did you write about me in that bloody book Aquarius gave you??
She wanted to crawl under the desk and stay for a decade. ?Don?t be absurd.?
How had he guessed so quickly? Had her words really brought him to her door? God, she felt like an idiot!
?Forget I asked about last night. Let?s focus on work.?
His eyes narrowed. ?What made you open the door and let me in??
?It?s no secret I wanted you. But as you said earlier, itch scratched. Moving on.?
?I said no such thing,? he growled.
Hadn?t he, just hours ago? Hadn?t he said repeatedly they had no future? Of course. He hadn?t been there of his own free will in the first place. ?Don?t play games.?
?Which is exactly what you?ve done by cheapening last night.?
He was right; she had cheapened last night, most likely. In a way she hoped he never discovered. ?Sorry.?
She couldn?t expect an emotional response from Caden when she?d used a magical diary to break his natural reticence. He?d come to her flat and shagged her because that had been her wish, not because he felt any eternal devotion.
?Forget I mentioned it. Work is piling up this morning, and I?m stressed.?
Caden gnashed his teeth and looked away. ?Is it going to start another fight if I ask if there?s anything I can do to help??
?No.? Because if he stayed with her in this small office, she was in grave danger of wrapping her arms around him and pleading for his affection.
Before he could respond, Sydney?s phone rang. The caller ID had her sighing in relief. Aquarius.
Sydney picked it up and answered, ?Thank God you?ve called. Can you meet me??
Caden wasn?t certain who Sydney was talking to and, at the moment, didn?t much care. Frustration ate at him. Everything about this situation was wrong, and he had no idea how to fix it. And now Sydney was on the bloody phone with God knew who, discussing God knew what. For all he knew, she was making a date.
On second thought, he did care who she talked to; he needed to know who to kill.
Quickly, Sydney covered her earpiece, ?Can you give me a moment??
With an angry jerk, he turned to leave. But he couldn?t make himself walk away. If Sydney was in the process of replacing him in her bed mere hours later . . . well, he wasn?t a masochist by nature, but something in him needed to know. He couldn?t keep her, but he couldn?t stand the thought of losing her.
With a distracted push, Sydney eased the door nearly shut. Caden leaned closer to the slightly ajar door and listened.
?I?m here,? she said. ?Lunch sounds great. Can you meet me at eleven-thirty at that um . . . Blue whatever the name was?? She paused. ?Perfect. I?ll see both of you then.?
Both of them? Was she contemplating dating more than one man?
?Work is fine. I know you?re supposed to be on holiday. I don?t want to bog you down, but I need help with this week?s story. It?s still developing. I also need to ask you about that magical diary you gave me for my birthday.?
Oh, so she was talking to Aquarius and going to meet her?and a friend??for lunch. Caden sighed with relief. Not only because Aquarius was in town, but because Sydney was still single. He couldn?t stomach the thought of her with another man, and it would be wise to refrain from violence before eight a.m.
?What can you tell me about that book? Its origins? Does it have any ties to the magical world I?ve been writing about?? She spoke in low tones.
Caden closed his eyes and concentrated very hard, hoping to hear both sides of Sydney?s conversation. Aquarius loudly answered yes to Sydney?s last question, then her voice dropped again. He picked up a word or two about someone named Emma, whoever the bloody hell that was.
Then Sydney spoke again, ?Perfect. I?m still working on the ongoing war angle of this story, but would you mind if I wrote this week?s article about the book??
Her words jolted Caden, as if someone had put ten thousand volts through his body. Damn and blast, he couldn?t let Sydney write that. The danger to her if Mathias read the article. . . . Caden?s blood chilled and his breath stopped as he imagined everything the terrible wizard would force her to endure. Hadn?t he convinced her yet that this angle was dangerous? That she could be a target?
Hand on the knob to her door, Caden prepared to charge in. He could not let her write about that bloody book. Not this week, not ever.
Before he could push the door open, someone tapped his shoulder. Caden whirled to see Holly, Sydney?s editor. Well, damn. This looked bad.
?I was just going to ask her a question.?
?And it?s taken the last two minutes of intense eavesdropping to decide what to say??
?No. Well, she . . . I don?t think??
Holly held up a hand to stop him. ?Come with me.?
Caden looked back at Sydney?s closed door. He didn?t have much choice. Later, before Sydney left for lunch, he?d talk to her, make her see reason, convince her not to run that story.
With a sigh, he followed Holly.
?Do you have anything personal in your cubicle??
?Just my camera. Why??
?Get it.? She walked him to his desk, where he retrieved his camera and keys. Other than that, he?d brought nothing.
?That?s all, then? I?ll walk you to the door.?
A chill went up his spine. ?The door??
Holly sent him a glare that said the jig was more than up as she escorted him to the front. ?C?mon, MacTavish. You?ve used every angle to learn her source. Hitting on her, going to her apartment, eavesdropping. It?s clear you want to scoop her and??
?No! God, no. I swear. Holly??
?Save it. You?re sacked.? Holly opened the paper?s front door. Weak morning sun glared in his eyes, blinding him. ?Get out. Now.?
CHAPTER SEVEN
CADEN MADE IT BACK to his flat, rage barely in check. The minute the door slammed behind him, he shouted a string of curses. He?d been sacked and he had no idea where to find the mystery ?Blue? restaurant at which Sydney, Aquarius and whoever would have lunch. Translation: Mission failed. He?d never learned if Sydney?s source was Anka. Damn it all, no Anka meant no return to sanity for Lucan, and no going back to Texas for him. Sydney was going to pursue a dangerous story, and he was no longer there to protect her.
As a Marine, failure wasn?t something he tolerated well. Logically, he knew he should be glad. Now that he was no longer employed at Out of This Realm, Bram would have to assign the mission to someone else. Eliminating lies and subterfuge thrilled him. But not completing a mission rankled. He?d continue searching for Anka another way, of course. He didn?t recall any magical detectives from his childhood, and he knew from his own mother that seers could be notoriously unreliable. He needed another plan, one that removed Sydney from danger.
He reached into his pocket and picked out one of the white summoning rocks Bram had given him, then thrust it back. Like anything magical, Caden had come to hate these after Westin?s death. Once he?d been old enough to learn to bewitch one, he?d been completely against it, despite Lucan offering to teach him. Having lived among humankind for so long, tossing a pebble in the air, calling someone?s name, and having them appear moments later seemed creepy and abnormal.
He knew his magic was coming. Today, he?d awakened energized and refreshed for the first time in weeks. Within hours, the shakes, the sweats, and the never-ending sex drive had kicked in again. Signs of his coming change. But until magic forced unwanted powers upon him, by God, he was still a man.
Grabbing his mobile phone, he punched in Bram?s number. He?d tell the sod to assign someone else to this errand. He was out of the James Bond business.
But being sacked also meant he had no more reason to see Sydney each day. After the way he?d left her this morning, she was angry and hurt. That made him wince.
Had her anger been strong enough to sabotage his job? Sydney had long suspected he was trying to scoop her story. Holly had reiterated the same suspicion, and he?d seen precious little of the editor. The woman couldn?t have fabricated that worry by herself. Sydney had likely helped her reach that conclusion. Because of his abrupt departure this morning?
Caden didn?t lament the loss of the job. The loss of the woman? God help him, that was a stab in the heart.
If he kissed her and opened his burgeoning magical senses to Sydney, he was certain they would demand he speak the Call. And given his complete lack of restraint with Sydney, he would have blurted the words, caution be damned. That quickly, magic would have forced a mate on him.
Caden required self-control, and Sydney stripped him of it more easily than he liked. Losing her after mating himself to her would only leave him ripe for the kind of lunacy that could kill him. Worse, magickind was fast becoming a dangerous place?one in which she didn?t belong. She would be safer if she stayed away from him. And stopped writing stories likely to catch Mathias?s notice.
?MacTavish?? Bram answered, sounding irritable. ?It?s nine a.m. on a Tuesday, and you?re ringing me? Tell me??
?I?ve been sacked.?
?What?!?
Caden reiterated the morning?s events, leaving out the fact he had spent the night in Sydney?s arms and bed.
After he was finished, Bram sighed. ?We didn?t need this setback.?
?As some of my American friends say, I screwed the pooch.? And that burned his hide. ?Damage done. Now you?re free to send someone else in to snuff the stories. I just ask that whomever you send protect Sydney.?