Penumbra (Spook Squad 3)

He stopped the thought. That was hardly fair. And she couldn’t exactly be blamed for her reluctance to have backup. She’d been abandoned as a teenager and, for all intents and purposes, had grown into adulthood alone. She’d spent half her life having few friends and depending on no one but herself. It wasn’t entirely surprising that she would reject his offer of help now.

What was surprising was the fact that she still wanted to see him socially, even after all he’d done to her.

He blew out a breath, then he spun on his heel and hitched the collar of his jacket up in an attempt to stop the rain from dripping down his neck as he walked across the street. He’d spotted Alain as he’d followed Sam from O’Hearn’s office earlier, and the big man had been their distant shadow ever since. He was glad Sam hadn’t spotted Alain. Undoubtedly, that would have made the situation worse.

Lightning split the wet darkness—a blinding, ragged streak whose power seemed to echo right through him. He frowned. When he’d stepped out into the storm earlier, he’d felt the energy in the night. It was a sensation similar to walking underneath high-voltage power lines—the crackle of electricity was very audible, and static had caressed his hair and skin. If he had been standing under high-voltage lines, and if he were stupid enough to climb the pylons, he could have touched all that power, felt it running through him. And died in the process.

The storm had felt like that—power that was both enticing and dangerous. Power he could reach out and touch if he wanted to. Power that would kill him if he tried.

He glanced at his hands. There were no burn marks, despite the fact that he’d shoved them into the middle of the lightning strike. Neither he nor Sam had been hurt, and that in itself was a miracle.

Or maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it was just another sign that Karl was right. She’d used the storms before and was certainly no stranger to that sort of power running through her. Maybe touching her had somehow protected him.

Or maybe, as Karl had stated, he and Sam had a bond in which the storms were a major component—one they couldn’t yet understand, and maybe never would.

For someone who didn’t want bonds of any kind, he seemed to be gaining more than his fair share. And there wasn’t much he could do to stop it. Ignoring the bond—and trying to push her away—hadn’t worked.

Actually, he pretty much suspected that, despite her words to the contrary, he’d only made her more determined to force the issue.

And he wasn’t actually sure how he felt about that.

He didn’t want bonds of any kind; he’d been telling himself that for half his life. Yet part of him now hungered for it. Hungered for the closeness his brother and sisters had.

Maybe the lightning had affected him. Short-circuited a brain wire or two.

He hurried inside the small café where Alain had settled. His brother-in-law sat at a table to the left of the entrance, out of immediate sight but with a full view of the road and Wetherton’s building. Gabriel took off his coat and shook it out as he walked over. Droplets of moisture scattered over the nearby chairs and tables, but since the café was almost empty, it didn’t really matter.

“I ordered you a coffee,” Alain said, sliding one of two steaming cups across the table.

“Thanks.” Gabriel slung the coat over the spare chair and sat down. “You saw what happened?”

Alain nodded. “It was pretty damn scary, too.” He glanced down, his gaze skimming Gabriel’s hands. “You don’t appear to be suffering any side effects from the strike. How did Sam fare?”

“Much the same.” Gabriel shrugged, not wanting to get into explanations when he really didn’t have them. “But we have a bigger problem.”

“What?”

Alain picked up his coffee and sipped it, but there was the faintest touch of amusement in his brown eyes. Which, knowing the man as well as he did, suggested to Gabriel that his next comment would come as no surprise. “Sam knows we’re following her. She wants you both to stop, or she says she’ll call Stephan.”

“So what are you planning to do?”

“Nothing. I want you and Jess to keep watching as planned. Except for tomorrow. I’ll take over the day shift.”

“Will she go through with her threat if she sees us?”

“Most likely, so you need to be careful.”

Alain raised a bushy eyebrow. “Stephan will not be happy if he discovers what we’ve been up to.”

“Undoubtedly.” Gabriel picked up his coffee and gulped down some of the steaming liquid. “But I don’t care.”

“So, basically, you’re saying the only thing you do care about is Sam’s safety.” Alain paused, a grin stretching his lips. “One could take that as an indication of emotional interest.”

“Or professional interest. Especially if she proves to be our link to Sethanon.”

Alain put down his cup and crossed his arms. “And do you believe that she is the link? After all these years of successfully avoiding us, do you seriously think Sethanon will come out of hiding for one woman?”

“Seriously? Yes.”