Raintree: Santuary

NINE

“Judah is…?”

“Come on. He’s almost here.” Eve tugged on Mercy’s hand.

“Bar that black devil from this house,” Sidonia said.

Ignoring Sidonia’s warning, Mercy went with Eve out into the hallway that led to the foyer. Sidonia followed, grumbling her fears aloud.

Just as they reached the foyer, Eve waved her little hand and the front door whooshed open. Judah Ansara, hand raised to knock, was standing on the front porch. Surrounded by darkness, with only moonlight illuminating his silhouette, he did indeed look like the black devil Sidonia had professed him to be.

“Daddy!” Eve cried as she released Mercy’s hand and ran straight to her father.

Judah stepped over the threshold, the night wind entering with him, his long hair slightly disheveled, his gaze riveted to his daughter. Without hesitation, he dropped the suitcase he held, swept Eve up into his arms and kicked the door closed behind him.

Eve wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his cheek. “I knew you’d come back. I knew you would.”

Mercy watched in awed fascination at the exchange between father and daughter. Even without her empathic abilities, she would have been able to see the bond that had already begun forming between them. And knowing she was powerless to stop what was happening frightened her.

Eve’s words echoed inside Mercy’s head. I was born for the Ansara.

Unable to completely ignore Sidonia’s constant mumbling, Mercy turned, gave the old nanny a withering glare and telepathically told her to hush. Sidonia glowered at Mercy and shook her head, but she reluctantly quieted before shuffling off and making her way slowly up the stairs.

Mercy took several tentative steps toward Judah. As if only then aware of Mercy’s presence, he adjusted Eve so that she rested on his hip and looked at Mercy.

She couldn’t explain her feelings, not even to herself. She despised Judah, and resented his presence here at the sanctuary and in her daughter’s life. But at the same time, the very fact that he was here reassured her that he cared about Eve, that he was ready to help her protect their child. Their gazes locked for a brief instant; then Judah refocused on his daughter.

“I want you to promise me something,” he said to Eve.

“What do you want me to promise?”

“Promise me that until I tell you it’s all right, you won’t use your mind to speak with anyone except your mother and me.”

With her arms clinging about Judah’s neck, Eve pulled back, cocked her head to one side and looked directly into her father’s eyes. “He’s a bad man, isn’t he, Daddy? He wants to hurt us.”

“Yes, he’s a bad man.” Judah frowned. “Now, give me your promise that-”

“I promise,” Eve said.

As easily as that, she had agreed to do as Judah requested. Mercy sighed inwardly, fearing that Eve would never question her father’s orders.

Judah set Eve on her feet. She grabbed his hand. He glanced down at her and smiled. “It’s late. You should be in bed asleep.”

“I was,” Eve said. “But when I heard you calling to me, I woke up and let you in. That’s what you wanted, wasn’t it?”

Judah grunted. “Yes, it’s what I wanted. But now I want you to go upstairs and hop back into bed.” He glanced at Mercy. “Your mother and I have things we need to talk about.”

“I want a promise, too. I want you to promise me that you won’t fuss.” Eve looked from one parent to the other. “Be nice, okay?.”

“I’ll be as nice to Mercy as she is to me,” Judah said.

Eve smiled triumphantly, then eyed Judah’s suitcase. “You’ll be here in the morning when I get up, won’t you?”

“I’ll be here.”

Eve bounced up the stairs, a bundle of happy energy.

Once Mercy and Judah were alone, she said, “I’ll arrange for you to stay in one of the cabins.”

“No, I’ll stay here in the house.” He approached her so quickly that she had no time to react until he grasped her upper arm. “I need to be close to Eve…and to you.”

Mercy’s heartbeat accelerated. He’s a master charmer, she reminded herself. He would say whatever he thought she wanted to hear in order to get what he wanted. And she could never let herself forget for one moment that what he wanted was Eve.

“You can’t stay here for very long.” She forced herself to maintain eye contact, to prove to him that she wasn’t afraid of him, that he had no emotional hold on her simply because she had given birth to his child. “Keeping your presence here a secret will be impossible for more than a day or two. There are other Raintree visiting the sanctuary. More than half the cottages are filled. Whatever you need to do to protect Eve from your brother, do it quickly and then leave.”

“I’m afraid things are more complicated than that.”

Mercy eyed him suspiciously.

Tightening his hold on her arm, he said, “You have every right to be afraid.”

Mercy gazed into Judah’s cold gray eyes and felt the hypnotic draw of his masculine power. The only way to free herself of this man and keep him from taking their daughter was to kill him. But not yet. Not until she knew that Eve would be safe from Judah’s enemies.

He raked his gaze over her as if stripping her bare, then slowly released her. Mercy shivered.

“All you have to do is ask,” Judah said, “and I’ll give you what you want.”

Tightening her hands into fists, Mercy willed herself not to strike out and wipe that cocky smirk off his face. “I want you dead,” she told him.

“That wasn’t a very nice thing to say to me.”

“No it wasn’t, but it’s the truth.”

“Only half the truth.” His gaze caressed her roughly, creating an ache deep inside her. But he didn’t physically touch her again. “Before you kill me, you want me to pleasure you first, to lay you beneath me and-”

“You’re an egotistical bastard.”

“And you’re a woman hungry for what only I can give you.”

“You mean no more to me than I do to you,” Mercy told him. “If you weren’t Eve’s father-”

“But I am.” He focused on her lips. “And you can never forget how it was between us the night you conceived my child. The excitement. The passion.” He moved closer, until their bodies almost touched, never once removing his gaze from her lips. “I remember the way you whimpered and pleaded. The way you clung to me, shivering and moaning.”

Involuntarily, as if manipulated by a force she couldn’t control, Mercy reached out and laid her hand on Judah’s chest, placing her palm over his heart.

“I taught you what true pleasure is,” he said. “And you loved it.” He glanced down at her hand. “You loved me.”

Mercy jerked her hand away. “No, I never loved you,” she lied-to herself and to him. She had loved him, if only for those few brief hours before she had learned who he really was. An Ansara.

Straightening his shoulders, Judah stood tall and aloof. “Your destiny was to give me a child. You’ve done that. You’ve served your purpose.”

Mercy stared at him, suddenly realizing that she had somehow wounded him. He had switched from seductive charm to cruel indifference in a matter of seconds. Had she discovered the chink in Judah’s protective armor? Male pride? Or was it something far more personal?

Storing that insight away for later use, she asked, “Will he try to harm Eve?”

“What?”

“Your brother. Will he come here to the sanctuary and try to get to Eve? That’s why you’re here, isn’t it, to make sure he doesn’t harm her?”

“My brother’s days are numbered. It was inevitable that I’d be forced to kill him.”

“I can’t imagine hating my own brother enough to kill him.”

“It’s Cael’s hatred that will force me to kill him. He’s left me no choice.”

“What about your parents? Can’t they-”

“Our father is dead. And Cael’s mother murdered mine.”

“Oh.”

Judah picked up his suitcase. “Show me to a room near Eve.”

“The closest room to Eve’s, other than the nanny’s connecting room, is mine.”

“Is that an invitation?” Judah’s lips curved into a suggestive smile.

“Perhaps it is.” Mercy’s lips mimicked his, a smile without warmth or sincerity. “But if you come to my bed, you’ll have to sleep with one eye open to prevent me from murdering you in your sleep.”

“As tempting as the offer is…”

“There’s a guest room at the end of the hall. You can stay there tonight.”

“And tomorrow night?”

“You’ll be gone,” Mercy told him. “You and I will settle this matter tomorrow, and then you’ll leave the sanctuary and never return.”

As Judah studied her, she felt him probing her thoughts.

Don’t even try, she warned him.

If I show you a little bit of mine, will you show me a little bit of yours?

No!

Aren’t you the least bit curious? he asked.

No!

Liar.

“Come upstairs with me. I’ll take you to your room,” Mercy said aloud. “And when you wake later this morning, be sure to stay close to the house. If you venture too far away during the day, someone might see you and question who you are.”

“Don’t you think I could pass myself off as a Raintree?”

“Not with those ice-cold gray eyes of yours.”

“Point well made,” Judah said.

Mercy led him up the stairs to the second floor. He paused as they passed Eve’s room, pushed open the door halfway and looked inside at his sleeping daughter.

“Why do you suppose her eyes are Raintree green?”

“Because she is Raintree,” Mercy replied.

When Judah entered Eve’s bedroom, Mercy followed but didn’t try to stop him.

He halted beside the mattress, where Eve rested on her tummy, her arms thrown out on her pillow on either side of her head. He reached down and touched her long, pale hair.

Mercy held her breath. He lifted Eve’s hair, then parted it with his fingers to reveal the distinct blue crescent moon birthmark that proclaimed her heritage. The brand of the Ansara.

Judah allowed Eve’s hair to fall back into place. He caressed her little head, then turned, looked at Mercy and smiled. And for that one moment Mercy saw love in Judah’s eyes. Love for his daughter.

Wednesday Morning, 8:45 a.m.

Judah’s cell phone woke him from a sound sleep.

Damn! Whoever was calling had better have a good reason.

He grabbed the ringing phone from the nightstand, checked the caller I.D. and answered. “Claude?”

“Cael left Terrebonne this morning.”

Judah sat straight up. “When?”

“An hour ago.”

“Was he alone?”

“No.”

“How many?”

“We’re not sure, but Sidra says only three went with him.”

“Who?” Judah asked.

“We believe he took Risa, Aron and Travis.”

“They could be here in North Carolina by this afternoon.”

“They can’t enter the sanctuary, can they?” Claude asked.

“No, I don’t think so. Not unless…”

“Unless what?”

“Unless they can somehow use Eve.”

“Is that possible?”

“I have no way of knowing for sure. It’s possible that her presence here has somehow compromised the shield that protects the sanctuary from the outside world.”

“As you well know, that shield also protects the sanctuary from those of us who do not possess power equal to Mercy Raintree,” Claude said. “If that shield has been weakened, then think how much easier it would be for us to take control of the sanctuary. With access to the Raintree home place, we could-”

“No.” Judah lowered his voice. “Even with that advantage, we’re still not ready to battle the Raintree.”

“Not yet, but surely sooner than we had thought.”

“Before we alter our plans for the timing of the next great battle, I have to make sure Eve is safe.”

“That will mean killing Cael before he can harm her or find a way to use her against you.”

“Yes, I know. But it’s either face a possible civil war when his followers rebel or go to war with the Raintree before we’re ready. Moving against Cael now is the lesser of two evils.”

“Do you want me to send someone after Cael and the others?” Claude asked. “Or I can-”

“No, stay there. I need you in Terrebonne. I don’t think Cael will show up here himself. He’ll send Aron and Travis. When they arrive, I’ll be waiting for them, and if they try to enter the sanctuary, I’ll send what’s left of them back to Cael in a gift box.”

“Perhaps you should have waited before revoking the ancient decree,” Claude said. “Once Cael heard what you’d done, he must have known there was no doubt that there was a mixed-blood child out there. A child of yours.”

“I had no choice. If I hadn’t revoked the ancient decree, countless Ansara would have demanded my daughter’s death.”

“I’m sorry I questioned your decision. If Sidra says the child must be protected, then we must protect her.”

“Use whatever means necessary to keep Cael under surveillance. And it doesn’t matter if he knows he’s being watched. In fact, all the better if he does.”

The door to Judah’s bedroom swung open, and Eve sailed in, like a little morning sunbeam, bright and cheerful.

“Good morning, Daddy.”

Crap! Judah slept in the nude; so here he was sitting on the side of the bed stark naked. Holding the cell phone to his ear with one hand, he grabbed the top sheet with his other and yanked it up and over, covering himself properly from waist to knees.

“Who are you talking to on the phone?” Eve bounced up on the bed and smiled at him.

He clutched the top sheet, holding it in place as she scooted closer. “Let me call you back,” he told Claude.

“Don’t hang up,” Eve said. “I want to say hello to your friend.”

Judah shook his head, then asked, “Where’s your mother?”

Ignoring his question, Eve pulled herself up on her knees and reached for the cell phone. Judah gave her a stern look. She hesitated, then called loudly, “Hello, Claude. I’m Eve.”

Claude chuckled. “Having a discipline problem?

“She’s quite the little psychic, isn’t she, to have intuitively known my name,” Claude said.

“I want to talk to Claude.” Eve reached for the phone.

“My daughter’s talents are quite impressive,” Judah admitted. “Look, just say hello to her, will you?” He handed the phone to Eve.

She smiled. “Thank you, Daddy.” She put the phone to her ear and said, “Hi there. You’re calling from far away, aren’t you?”

Judah telepathically tuned in to the conversation.

“Yes, I am,” Claude replied “How did you know?”

“I know things. I have lots of powers, but my mother won’t let me use most of them ’cause I can’t always make them mind me.” Eve lowered her voice to a whisper. “Just like I don’t always mind her.”

She giggled. Claude chuckled.

“I once knew a little boy like you. He possessed great power, but when he was your age, he couldn’t control his powers any more than his father could control him.”

Eve giggled again. “That was my daddy, wasn’t it?” She looked at Judah with pure adoration in her eyes.

Damn those green Raintree eyes!

So like Mercy’s.

“Say goodbye to Cousin Claude,” Judah said.

“Goodbye, Cousin Claude. I’ll see you very soon.”

She handed Judah the phone, then snuggled up against him as he held the sheet in place over his lower body and put in a telepathic SOS to Mercy.

“Your little Eve is quite a charmer,” Claude said to Judah. “Like father, like daughter, huh?”

“Could be.”

“Why does she think she’ll see me very soon?” Claude asked. “Have you told her that you’re bringing her to Terrebonne?”

“No. The subject hasn’t come up.”

Eve tapped Judah on the shoulder. Turning his head to face her, he asked, “What?”

“Tell Cousin Claude I said that I’d see him very soon because he’s coming here to the sanctuary.”

Judah stared at his daughter.

“Why does she think-” Claude began.

“Eve Raintree, come here right this minute!” Mercy stood in the doorway, hands on hips, a parental scowl on her face.

Eve popped off the bed and raced over to her mother. “I got to talk to Cousin Claude. He’s coming to the sanctuary very soon, and we’ll get to meet him.”

Mercy’s gaze met Judah’s, the concern and puzzlement in her eyes matching his.

“We’ll talk later,” Judah told Claude. “Keep me posted on that matter we discussed.”

He didn’t wait for a reply before ending the conversation and tossing his cell phone onto the nightstand. “Eve, why don’t you go with your mother while I grab a shower and get dressed?”

Mercy’s glance skimmed over Judah’s naked chest and shoulders, appreciating his lean body, although she wasn’t consciously aware of what she was doing. He returned the admiring glance. Mercy was certainly easy on the eye. The first moment he’d seen her seven years ago, he’d been struck by how beautiful she was. Even before he looked into her striking green eyes and realized she was Raintree, he had wanted her.

Clearing her throat, Mercy clasped Eve’s hand. “It isn’t polite to barge into someone’s room without being invited.” She looked at Judah. “I’m sorry she bothered you. It won’t happen again.” When she pulled on Eve’s hand, Eve balked.

Judah grinned.

Eve yanked on Mercy’s hand and motioned for her to bend down, which Mercy did. Eve whispered loudly, “I’ll go to my room and play for a while. You and Daddy need to talk about me some more.”

Mercy didn’t have a chance to respond before Eve scurried out of the room, lightning fast, and closed the door behind her.

“She’s quite a little bossy-butt, isn’t she?” Judah said.

“She’s a Raintree princess. Giving orders comes naturally to her, as it should. Unfortunately, she hasn’t learned the art of diplomacy yet.”

“Diplomacy is an overrated art. I prefer action to talk, and I expect my daughter is the same.”

“Eve does like to have her own way. But she’s young, and she’ll learn that she can’t always have everything she wants.”

Judah whipped back the sheet that covered his naked body and rose from the bed. Mercy gasped. He grinned.

“If you see anything you like, you can have it. Right now.”

Mercy stared at him, drinking him in, her gaze lingering over his erection. Then she looked him square in the eyes. “Sometimes what we want is very bad for us, and we learn from experience to avoid danger.”

Judah moved toward her, one slow, provocative step at a time. She stood her ground, not backing away, keeping her eyes glued to his face.

When he reached out and caressed her cheek with the back of his hand, she closed her eyes. “You still want me.”

She said nothing.

From that one brief touch, he sensed her desire. “I want you, too.” He slipped his hand around her neck and lowered his head. She sighed. His breath mingled with hers. She opened her eyes, and for just an instant, unaware of her vulnerability, she let the barrier protecting her thoughts weaken.

My God!

He yanked her to him, pressing his sex intimately against her. If she were as naked as he was…“There hasn’t been anyone else, has there? You’re as much mine now as you were that night.”

When he kissed her hungrily, she stood there rigid and unresponsive. But when he gentled the kiss, she whimpered. As he ravaged her mouth with tender passion, she pressed both hands against his chest and tried to shove him away.

Judah grabbed her and pulled her with him as he backed up against the bed. Taking her now would be almost like taking her for the first time. She was untouched by any other man, untutored, practically a virgin.

He toppled her into the bed and came down over her, holding her lifted arms out to either side as she struggled against his superior strength. Straddling her, his knees holding her hips in place, he stared down at her flushed face, and saw both desire and anger in her expression.

“Do you think I’ll let you rape me?” she spat the words at him.

“It wouldn’t be rape, and we both know it. You want me.”

Breathing hard, Mercy narrowed her gaze and focused on him.

He bellowed in pain, and rolled off her and onto his side. Damn her! She’d sent a psychic punch straight to the most vulnerable area of his anatomy, the equivalent of kneeing him in the groin. While he caught his breath and mumbled curses, she got out of bed and walked to the door. Pausing, she glanced over her shoulder.

“I allow you to live only because of Eve,” she said.

He shot a spray of fire arrows at her, their glowing tips outlining the space around her body. She extinguished them before they singed the door behind her.

“You may wish me dead, but you won’t kill me.” His cold stare pinned her to the spot. “And I won’t kill you. Not until I’ve fucked you again.”