Street Game

CHAPTER 6

Kane waved a forkful of biscuits and gravy in Jaimie’s direction to emphasize his point. “That little blueberry muffin is not exactly nutritious, Little Miss Nag. And it wouldn’t fill up my big toe.”

“Chicken-fried steak, biscuits, and all that gravy ought to shoot your cholesterol level right up to the moon.” Jaimie was all righteousness. Her vivid blue gaze pinned Mack, who was trying unsuccessfully to become part of the woodwork. “And no one eats four eggs. That’s your week’s worth in one sitting. We all studied nutrition, remember?”

“You studied it and forced us to eat the most god-awful concoctions known to man,” Mack protested.

“I’m allergic to all that nutritious stuff,” Kane said soberly. “Absolutely allergic. Remember the brewer’s yeast, Mack? Didn’t she almost kill me with brewer’s yeast?”

“She killed the popcorn,” Mack remembered.

“You were smothering the popcorn in butter,” Jaimie was indignant. “Someone had to save you. Hardening of the arteries. You two are getting on in years, you know.” She smirked at them rather smugly and at the same time took a quick glance around her.

They weren’t alone. She saw Brian and Jacob having breakfast in a booth facing them just to her left. At the table nearest the door, Marc drank coffee across from Ethan, who seemed engrossed in a newspaper. She had caught a brief glimpse of Javier, looking like a teenager with his boyish good looks, and Lucas, looking like a model in a business suit, moving through the crowded street as they’d entered the restaurant.

Both Mack and Kane scowled across the table at her fiercely, hoping to intimidate her. “Getting on in what years?” Kane demanded ominously.

Jaimie broke off a small piece of blueberry muffin, unconcerned with their threatening posture-after all, she had all the boys surrounding her and presumably they were there for her protection. “It’s a fact of life. Everyone has to come to terms with aging. One should take a few precautions.”

“A few precautions sounds like an excellent idea,” Kane grumbled. “Pitching you into the ocean might be a good start.”

“I thought we might take a walk over the Golden Gate this afternoon,” Mack suggested helpfully, in complete agreement.

“You two have a disturbing penchant for violence,” she chided. “Perhaps you should see a shrink. I noticed it way back in high school. All those contact sports, football, boxing, fencing, karate.” She shook her head mournfully. “Violent.”

“We had a little vamp to protect,” Kane defended. “We had to be prepared.”

“I beg your pardon?” Icicles dripped from her voice. There was a distinctly regal look about her.

“She was never a vamp,” Mack disagreed. “But you were a beautiful innocent and every wolf for a hundred miles was stalking you.” There was a caressing note in the deep timbre of his voice. “We had to keep a close watch.”

Jaimie burst out laughing, the sound turning heads. “You’re crazy. The two of you obviously have a far different memory of our past than I do.”

The two men exchanged easy grins. “You never did see things you didn’t want to.” Kane was pleased with himself; it wasn’t easy diverting Jaimie when she was off on one of her tangents on nutrition. There was no way she hadn’t noticed the rest of the team infiltrating the restaurant to protect her. He knew she loved them all; she’d grown up with them, so she was happy to see them, but she didn’t like what they represented-violence, a way of life, the very thing she’d worked so hard to get out of. He wanted her happy, teasing, that carefree laugh and bright eyes to remain for as long as possible.

“Eat your steak, Kane,” Jaimie advised.

“Notice how she changes the subject when it gets a little hot?” Mack asked, his black gaze suggesting all sorts of wicked, sinful things.

Her stomach did that slow, familiar roll that Mack had been causing in her for far too long. She didn’t see how she was going to be able to let him live in the same house with her, seeing him every day. It wasn’t just that she found him sexy as hell; she liked him. She liked his humor and the way he could laugh at life.

“I’m eating, Mack,” she said trying to sound prim instead of desperate. He had a gift of being able to focus just on her and no one or nothing else. He was doing it now, looking at her as if she were the only person in the world. Before, she had believed she was special and he saw no one but her. Now she knew better. She knew that focused stare was an amazing illusion. He saw everything in the restaurant, knew where every single person was seated and what they were wearing. He probably knew what they were eating.

She glanced down at her plate, suddenly not hungry again. She ached for him. Ached for their lost relationship.

He reached across the table and took her hand, his thumb sliding over the sensitive part of her wrist. “I don’t think that’s called eating.”

“Well, stop looking at me that way. There is nothing sexy about eating, and you’re looking at me like…” She made the mistake of looking up at him, of meeting his eyes, and just trailed off.

He smiled like a Cheshire cat. “Sure there is, the way you eat.”

He leaned toward her and brought her hand to his mouth, closing his lips around the tips of her fingers, his teeth gently nipping and scraping. Heat seared through her like a flash. All at once, the booth was far too small, the room too warm. She jerked her hand away, uncaring that he knew just how he affected her. “You have sex on the brain, Mack. Get your runaway hormones under control.” Jaimie said it looking as schoolmarmish as possible.

Kane choked on a mouthful of orange juice, turned slightly red, and looked surreptitiously around. “Jaimie!” He sounded shocked and lowered his voice, nearly whispering. “I can’t believe you said ‘sex’ or ‘hormones’ in public.”

She rolled her eyes. “You didn’t blast him for trying to eat my hand in front of everyone.” Her gaze swept the restaurant. Several of the men were snickering between bites of food. “Why didn’t you just invite them all to sit with us? Maybe we could walk down the street like a solid wall of testosterone.”

Kane choked again, spewing food into his napkin. “If I don’t want you to say S-EX, I certainly don’t think you should be saying that. Sheesh, woman. You’ve lost all sense of decorum since you’ve been on your own.”

Jaimie laughed. “You’re such a prude, Kane. I can say ‘prude,’ can’t I?”

“I’m not a prude,” he objected. “It’s just that there some things you don’t go talking about in public.”

Mack burst out laughing. “I tried to tell you she was out of control. We’re going to have to take her in hand.” He shamelessly leered at her.

“Tell Mack there are things you don’t go doing in public,” she replied hotly.

“I didn’t see a thing,” Kane defended piously.

Jaimie shrugged her slender shoulders nonchalantly. “Just for that, you two can fight over the check. Come on, I’m finished.” She tossed her napkin on the table and stood up.

“Jaimie.” Mack groaned. “Have a heart. We’re not finished.”

“I can’t help it if you’re slow eaters and fast talkers,” she replied sternly.

“You had a blueberry muffin,” Kane pointed out. “We had man-sized meals.”

“ ‘Had’ is the operative word here. It’s indecent and very bad manners to lick your plate.” She smiled sweetly. “I’ll meet you at the furniture shop.” She half turned. Mack’s hand snaked out with the speed of a striking cobra, and shackled her fragile wrist, preventing movement. “We’re finished, honey, don’t be in such a hurry.” His thumb feathered across the sensitive skin of her inner wrist, sending little fingers of flames licking up her arm.

He was looking at her. She could clearly see that, focusing on her the way that always made her feel special, yet he gave an almost imperceptible nod and Brian and Jacob immediately rose and walked to the counter to pay their tab. They exited the restaurant without even glancing her way.

Jaimie felt the punch in the region of her belly. “You know, Mack,” she hissed softly between clenched teeth as she twisted her wrist, tried to pull free. “You don’t need to flirt with me to do the job. I’m smart enough to know what needs to be done.”

Mack tightened his grip, his thumb stilling over the pulse beating so frantically there. He got to his feet slowly, lazily, his arm sliding around her waist, drawing her to his side. “You aren’t going anywhere without me.” As an afterthought Mack added,

“Without us.”

Jaimie set her jaw, but stopped struggling. It was useless drawing attention to them. It wouldn’t make Mack stop. “I wasn’t really going without you. I’m well aware you’re worried about someone coming after me. You don’t know me anymore, Mack. Don’t treat me like the child you used to know.”

Mack crowded her body just a little with his own. “I know you better than you know yourself. I know you better than your own mother did.”

“That’s not hard. Poor Mama didn’t know a thing about me except that I was too smart for my own good.” Jaimie briefly closed her eyes, thinking of her mother. Unwed pregnant teenager, boyfriend and family deserting her. The doctors, excited about her exceptional year-old child. Stacy Fielding had adored her baby girl, wanted something better than a life of waiting tables, and she’d struggled hard to give her a different life. Jaimie always wished she’d been one of those girls that had been ultrafeminine and giggly, instead of the serious, studious child she’d been. Her mother deserved that.

“You miss her, don’t you?” Mack dropped money on the table for the tip while Kane made his way up to the counter to pay the check.

“Of course I miss her. She had such a tragic life.”

She turned away from his comfort, that part of her that was still a child mourning her mother’s death unable to accept solace from him. Every morning she’d woken up and known she was facing another day without Mack. Now he was there and she felt more alone than ever. There had been Mack and Kane and her mother before Mack had brought her home to his mother and introduced her into his circle of friends. The boys had accepted her because Mack and Kane had. Now either everyone was gone or she’d lost that closeness with them.

After leaving Mack, she had learned to cope on her own. She didn’t want Mack coming back into her life with false promises and letting her lean on him. The memories of her childhood, good and bad, came flooding back with him. And the year she’d spent believing he loved her and wanted her for his wife, for the mother of his children. She’d lost her mother in the worst, most horrific way, and he knew she craved stability. But, when she’d gone to him and pleaded with him to give her what she needed, he’d been arrogant and aloof, pointing out her failings as a GhostWalker. Telling her he was committed to the program and wouldn’t have time or energy right then for a family.

Her throat closed at the memory. She couldn’t think about her mother, and she didn’t want to think about that last parting with Mack. They were together now for a short time, not under the best of circumstances, but she was determined to have a good day with them.

Mack slipped his arm around her shoulders in a gesture of comfort and she allowed herself to be led from the restaurant, sandwiched between the two men. Once on the street, he dropped his arm, stepping to the side of her.

“Keep moving, honey,” he ordered. “We studied the route from here and we can walk on the same side of the street all the way down. Stay between us. You know the drill.”

“You look like overzealous bodyguards,” she complained. It seemed natural to have one on either side of her, a leftover habit from childhood.

“We’ve been guarding your body for as long as I can remember,” Mack said with a teasing grin.

They joined the throng moving busily from block to block. Somehow the crowds seemed to part, the two men never once allowing anyone to so much as casually brush against her. She moved forward, aware that Jacob and Ethan were behind her. Her mind just did that-expanded and positioned the people around her. The weather was cool and a bit misty, the fog gray and gloomy, but already clearing with a promise of a nice afternoon. She enjoyed being able to move through a bustling, crowded street free of pain, taking in the sights and buildings without the mind-numbing information that always crowded into her head. Mack and Kane gave her that freedom. Most of the time she spent locked away from the world. It had taken months to find Joe, a man she could work with without the psychic backlash that was so debilitating with most people. There were a few rare people that had natural shields and she’d worked hard, interviewing nearly three hundred applicants before she’d found him.

Something odd fluttered into her mind, pushed aside the warm happiness, leaving a sudden cold fear. She snuck a long, slow look around her, making certain to stay in step. She kept her same facial expression, her body language the same.

“What is it?” Mack’s voice was low.

He’d always been so tuned to her. It was strange. When he appeared to be paying the least attention, he caught everything, the smallest nuance. When he appeared to be wholly focused on her, he was completely aware of his surroundings.

“I don’t know,” she said, and there was no keeping the uneasiness from her voice.

We go to red. Mack sent out the order without hesitation. “Let’s abort, Jaimie.”

She flashed him a quick look. “I’m not on a mission. We’re buying a bed. I could be picking up a threat to anyone. Someone thinking about going postal. It’s faint and I can’t identify it yet. It happens all the time. You know that.”

“I don’t want to take chances with your life,” he said.

“I thought you said the two men Javier took down were going to kidnap me,” she pointed out. “That doesn’t necessarily read that my life was in danger.”

They were nearly to the furniture store. She kept moving forward, her gaze on the entrance, but her heart was beating fast now. Mack was protective, but to take them all to the highest risk when she couldn’t even sort out a bad feeling was not like him.

“The tranq wasn’t a tranq. It was truth serum. They were going to question you, Jaimie, and they’d brought a few instruments with them.”

Her mouth went dry. “Torture?” She looked up at him then. And then at Kane’s carefully averted face. A muscle ticked in his jaw and his eyelid flickered. “They were going to torture me?”

“Damn it, Jaimie.”

Mack shielded her as a group of unruly teenagers on skateboards rushed past. Javier did a series of showy tricks to the whistles and admiration of the kids, shot her a jaunty grin, and kept going, skating through the crowd, laughing at the curses and snarls as people moved out of the way. He scattered everyone behind them, answering the obscene gestures with one of his own.

“He could be crazy, you know,” Jaimie said.

“I have no doubt he is.”

“I want to buy the beds today, Mack. I don’t want to spend today terrified and locked up in a room alone.”

He didn’t point out she wouldn’t be alone. You see anything? He sent the call out to them all, his men, his family, moving in and out of the crowd. Gideon up on the rooftops, following their every move, his rifle an extension of him. Not a thing, boss. The reports came back, all assuring him. Do we abort, Top? Marc was at the door, ready to go inside. They were almost on top of the shop. “Let’s just order the beds,” Jaimie said.

“We’re already here and I don’t have a strong feeling one way or the other right now. Please, Mack.”

We’ll proceed, but be careful, Marc. You’re my eyes.

Mack recognized it was important to her to be as normal as possible. She probably hadn’t been out in public in weeks. Joe had done her shopping, or she’d had everything delivered. He knew her routines. She preferred working alone or in the dead of night in empty buildings where the psychic overload didn’t sicken her to the point of brain bleeds. He’d seen it happen before. “Let’s just get this done fast. You tell me the first sign of uneasiness. We’ll get you out, Jaimie. No one’s going to get their hands on you.”

She had a bad taste in her mouth. She’d brought the storm down on her own head. None of this was Mack’s fault and she was actually grateful he was there. She had no doubt she would have had a good chance of getting away before the two men had gotten to her, but she would have lost everything she’d worked for and would have had to run for the rest of her life.

“Would you have come back to me?” Mack asked, guessing her thoughts. She took a breath. “No.” She would never have brought danger to him. He should have known that without making her say it.

She was looking at his face and caught the flash of anger quickly hidden behind his mask. For a moment her stomach shifted, but then he pushed open the door and Kane moved through, his larger body blocking hers. Mack fell into step behind her. She could feel Mack, and she moved in step with him as she followed Kane without hesitation. She’d never be foolish enough to put them in danger. She loved them, whether Mack understood her or not.

Do your thing, Jaimie, Kane said.

In here? With all these people? It would hurt like hell, opening herself up that way. She glanced at Mack. He obviously hadn’t heard Kane’s request, which meant he wouldn’t condone it. She bit her lip, took a breath, and expanded her mind, realizing Kane didn’t want any of the men in jeopardy. Civilians surrounded them. If an enemy was close, they had to know.

At once she was assailed with energy from every direction. Emotions hit hard, a solid punch to her stomach as anger and guilt and happiness and grief poured in from every direction. She pressed her lips together to keep anything from slipping past her throat, but her footsteps faltered. Mack put a hand on her back, but his eyes searched the customers moving around the store.

“You all right?”

She managed a nod as she waited for her brain to accept the overload so she could begin the sorting process. She forced herself to continue forward, although she had to concentrate on each separate step. As far as she could tell, no one in the store had lethal intentions toward anyone. A woman had lost her son in a car accident and another was contemplating suicide. There were two men who were criminals, a shoplifter, a very harassed mother of two. The list went on and on, but she didn’t feel anyone threatening her.

She took a breath, let it out, and breathed away the sickness collecting in the pit of her stomach as she closed her mind to the assault. She tasted blood in her mouth and reached in her pocket for a handkerchief. She pressed it to her nose, keeping her back to Mack as she followed Kane onto the floor they were looking for. We’re good.

You certain?

I told you, didn’t I? Did you think I’m so desperate to do whatever I want that I’d put one of my brothers in jeopardy? She let the bite in her voice sink in. Kane turned his head and looked at her, coming to an abrupt stop when he spotted the red staining the cloth. His eyes widened. “Jaimie.”

“What have you done?” Mack demanded, whirling her around to face him. He took the cloth from her hand to examine the amount of blood as Kane blocked any view of her body. “We’re both with you. You shouldn’t be having this much trouble.”

“I’m all right. I’ve always been far more sensitive than the rest of you. Even with both of you around, there’s no way to minimize the effect with this many people.”

“Why the hell did you do this to yourself?” Mack’s voice was gruff. She bit her lip as he gently cleaned the last remnants of blood from her face. “I wanted to make certain there was no danger. I don’t want the boys hurt, or any innocent bystanders. If these men were willing to torture me to see what information I have on Whitney, they’re willing to hurt anyone around me as well.”

“I asked her to,” Kane admitted, refusing to allow Jaimie to take the brunt of Mack’s anger. He knew Mack, knew his fears for Jaimie, the way he suffered every time she was in pain. He was helpless to stop it, and Mack didn’t like to be helpless.

“I knew you wouldn’t ask her.”

Mack’s eyes went flat and cold. A muscle ticked along his jaw. He kept working on Jaimie’s face, his touch tender. “I’ll be talking to you about this when we’re alone, Kane.”

Jaimie’s heart lurched. She brought up both hands to his wrist and stopped him-waited until he looked down at her. “Don’t be upset, Mack. He was right and you know he was. If it was anyone but me…”

“But it is you.” He stared down at her for a long moment, and then leaned forward to brush a kiss along her forehead. “And at least you know that.”

“I know. Come on, we know we’re all safe. Let’s buy you both a bed.”

There was a moment. A heartbeat she thought he wouldn’t let it go, but the grim reaper in his eyes disappeared and he smiled at her.

“Now you’re talking sense.”

She smiled back. “I usually do. I’m quite a bit smarter than you, you know.”

Instead of taking the bait and teasing her like he usually did, he slipped his arm around her shoulders and nodded. “You always have been. I should have listened to you.”

Everything inside her stilled as Mack followed Kane down the aisle toward kingsized beds, taking Jaimie with him. A capitulation. He’d said it so casually. I should have listened to you. She looked down at her hands as she pretended to be interested in the talk about mattresses. Mack had never apologized. Not in all the time she could remember being around him. Was he beginning to realize the enormity of what Whitney had done to them all? If so, she felt sorry for him. He would lay the blame squarely on his own shoulders. Mack believed in taking responsibility for his own actions.

“What do you think of this?” Mack asked Jaimie, drawing her out of her reverie. He propelled Jaimie across the room toward a king-sized waterbed.

“Oh, no,” she was very decisive, backing away from the massive polished frame.

“I will not have that monstrosity taking up space in my bedroom. It probably weighs enough to drop through two floors.”

“You’re crazy, woman. You’re living in a former car garage.”

“A warehouse. There’s a difference,” she countered indignantly. Mack’s answering snort was pure disdain. “I saw a couple of oil stains, Jaimie.”

“Heavy equipment. Forklifts. If you make one more crack about my beloved little home…”

“Little?” His eyebrow shot up.

“You’ll be sleeping on the roof with the pigeons, and I’m not kidding you.”

“Oil stains, Jaimie.”

“One more crack, Mack,” she threatened.

He turned his hands palms up in a gesture of surrender. “We’ll compromise, I’ll give up the water if you’ll go with the size.”

“King-sized?” She almost squeaked it. “It would take up all my space. I need wide-open spaces.” She glanced at Kane for help, but he was rolling around on a mattress and moaning in a loud, orgasmic manner. She rolled her eyes and heaved a sigh.

“Jaimie,” Mack said patiently, “that third floor is probably five thousand square feet. There’s plenty of space for anyone. A king-sized bed is appropriate for that kind of space.”

“A double bed is perfectly adequate.” Jaimie was snippy about it, one hand on her hip. “Twin beds would be even smarter.”

“Forget it.” Mack was firm. “We’ll settle for the double bed. Find one you like and we’ll have them deliver. We’ll need sheets, blankets, pillows, the whole bit. And not those silly eyelet things you like.”

“We need two beds, unless you plan on sleeping on the couch,” Jaimie pointed out, pinning him with a steely gaze.

Mack smirked, black eyes running over her with male amusement. “You concerned about the sleeping arrangements, honey?”

Her chin lifted. “You could say that.”

“Personally, I thought they were fine.”

“You would.” Jaimie crossed her arms and tapped her foot. “You take up too much room.”

“I wouldn’t in a double,” he protested.

“I’m not sharing my bed, it’s out of the question.”

He grinned at her. “Don’t trust yourself, huh?”

“That’s right, Mack, I’m liable to smother you with a pillow in the middle of the night.”

He circled her waist with his arms, drawing her stiff body against his, laughing openly into her upturned face. “You know you’re crazy about me, Jaimie, you may as well admit it.”

“Crazy’s a good word,” she agreed, leaning away from him, her blue gaze avoiding his. Her heart was pounding, her pulse racing. “I’m considering kicking you very hard right in the shins. I’m giving you fair warning.”

He bent down, his broad shoulders blocking out everything but his teasing grin, his sensuous mouth far too close to hers, his hungry black gaze devouring her face.

“So lucky, honey, saved by the sales clerk.” He whispered it in her ear, his teeth grazing her earlobe, sending a shiver of excitement coursing through her. Mack released her with obvious reluctance, turning to the salesman, stating exactly what he wanted.

Jaimie put her hands on her hips and glared at Kane. “Get up. You talk about me being improper in public. You’re engaging in illegal sex acts with that bed.”

“I’m in love. This is the one. I’m keeping her.”

“I don’t want her in my house. Not with you rolling around like that. Sheesh. I won’t be able to go to sleep worried about what you and that bed are doing.”

“Yeah, well, I have to worry about what you and Mack are doing and that’s just plain wrong for any brother to contemplate. You can live with the bed.”

She stuck her nose in the air and gave a little indignant sniff. “I can assure you, you do not have to worry about what’s going to happen between Mack and me. Absolutely nothing is going to happen.”

“Whoa!” Mack stopped the salesclerk by holding up his hand. “Why does he get this bed? It’s a queen. That’s favor itism, Jaimie. He gets a queen-sized, I get one too.”

She threw her hands into the air in surrender. “Fine. Take up my beloved room and don’t feel at all sorry about it.”

The two men high-fived each other and did a series of male knuckle-punching motions that made her laugh and shake her head. “I don’t think we’re all that far from the caveman era,” she pointed out.

Jaimie watched Kane and Mack double-team the sales clerk until he capitulated and agreed to have the beds delivered that afternoon. “You get your way in everything, don’t you,” she demanded as they fell into step to go from the store. We’re bringing her out, Mack sent to his team.

Marc moved into position in front of them and she saw Lucas drop in behind them. Ethan and Jacob were close, she could sense them, but she didn’t spot them. In spite of knowing the team was in place, her stomach coiled with tension. She remembered she’d excelled in all the training, but it was nerve-wracking moving through crowds of people knowing you were a target and those protecting you were people you loved.

She stayed in step with Marc, sandwiched between Mack and Kane, unless they were forced single file, which the two men managed to avoid most of the time. Jaimie knew they looked intimidating and they projected aggressive energy around them and in front of them, forcing people to unknowingly step out of the path. Coming out, Mack sent to his team outside.

Clear, Gideon reported.

They stepped out onto the sidewalk, into the bustling crowd, and began to make their way back toward the wharf district. As she walked between them, Jaimie couldn’t stop the small burst of happiness. Each day had been difficult without Mack, but that aside, their presence gave her the freedom to actually be normal for a short period of time. She could eat out, walk down the street, just pretend, for a few moments, that she was like everyone else.

“You don’t really mind the beds, do you, Jaimie?” Mack asked.

“No. I’d never expect you to sleep in a twin bed,” she admitted. “I was just giving you both a hard time. Although I’m not certain we should let Kane near his bed.”

Mack laughed and Jaimie turned her head to get Kane’s reaction when the first warning seized her. The second assault hit right on top of the first. In the crowd, Mack, he just dropped in behind us. Gideon broadcast the warning. Shooter on the roof. Second building on the left.

Get him in your sites now, Gideon, Mack commanded. Ethan, can you get around to us with the car?

Lucas moved up behind Jaimie, closing the gap so no one could get between them. They pushed through the crowd, heading for the corner where Ethan waited with the car. The sidewalk was lined with parked cars and traffic was nearly at a standstill. No chance. I can get to you on foot.

Stay with the car. We may need it.

I don’t have a clear shot. Get out of there. I’m moving position, Gideon said. Break to the right now, Jaimie, Mack ordered as he turned into a shop, yanking Jaimie in after him. Kane and Lucas followed. They made no pretense of etiquette, but hurried at a fast pace toward the back of the store. Ethan, bring the car around the block. We’re going out the back.

I’ve got him. He’s moving, trying to get around to get into position for a shot at the car. Green light? Gideon asked.

Take him out, Mack commanded grimly, as he kept moving through the store toward the back door.

Fuck! We’ve got another bogey. Another bogey in the field. I think it’s Superman. Gideon rarely swore, and Mack brought Jaimie to an abrupt halt, shielding her with his body. He was not willing to bring her onto the street, although they were going out a door a block away with a building between them and the shooter. Mack didn’t know how many they were up against. He wanted numbers and positions. The longer they waited in the store, the more they lost the slim advantage they’d gained. Shooter down. I think we both nailed him, Gideon reported. That bastard Superman and I are in a standoff, Top. I’m looking right down the business end of his rifle.

Back away. Get off the roof and clear, Gideon, Mack advised. I’m sending backup.

No way. This guy’s good, boss. If he wanted me dead, I’d be dead. We’d both be down because I’d take the son of a bitch with me and he knows it. Don’t provoke him. I think he’s watching over Jaimie.

Can you get clear?

If not, and I miss him, hunt him down for me.

Don’t get your ass shot off. I’ll be royally pissed.

Royally pissed? Not just plain pissed?

Jaimie felt the tension coiled tight in Mack’s body. She reached out, knowing they needed the positions of their enemies. She let her mind expand. She felt the violence of a kill, the dark energy spreading like bloodstains through the air, rushing straight at her. Hurrying, she expanded her mind, seeking enemies, tracking her boys, her family, the men guarding her.

There was Gideon on the roof, his energy a mixture of adrenaline, fear, and determination, and she knew she could read him only because he’d pulled the trigger and violence surrounded him like a net. Javier raced through the crowd to come up on their flank as they emerged. Lucas guarded the front door of the shop. Marc sprinted to take up his position to cover them. People were moving around like chess players on a board. She reached even further in an effort to find the hard-core violent energy of intent to do harm.

He’s in the crowd, near Javier. Coming around the block to intercept us. She tried to get the message out to them all before the killing energy hit with lethal force. The wave blasted through her head, hit her nervous system, nearly driving her to her knees.

“Damn it, Jaimie.” Mack slipped his arm around her to support her. She was bleeding from her nose and another thin trickle leaked down the side of her mouth. “I need you strong.”

“Mack.” Kane’s voice was quiet. Calm. “She told us where he was. Let’s go.”

They ignored the clerk trying to wave them away from the door marked emergency exit only and pushed their way through. Lucas fell in behind them as they burst out onto the street and into the middle of a crowd. Traffic was backed up and snarling, horns blaring and fingers gesturing obscenely as Ethan kept the Cadillac blocking the lane right off the back door.

Mack and Kane half carried Jaimie as she coughed blood onto the sidewalk. Javier burst through the crowd on his skateboard just as Lucas whirled to face the threat coming up behind him. The skateboarder flashed past Jaimie as Mack simply leaned down and shouldered her, sprinting for the vehicle. Javier kept going and someone in the crowd screamed, hands up in the air as blood sprayed over them. A man stumbled and went down, still clutching his unfired weapon in his hand.

Lucas ran to the downed man. “Call nine-one-one! He’s hurt. Does someone have a cell phone?” As a precaution, he pushed the gun away from the limp hand with his elbow, although Javier never missed. His practiced hands went through pockets, Lucas’s body hiding the movement. He came up empty just as he knew he would. Javier was long gone, lost in the crowd, and Ethan stuck his finger out the window, flipping off the angry drivers behind him, and then put his foot on the gas, taking them out of there.

“He was walking toward me,” the man covered in blood said. “Then he just coughed and looked at me and fell. You don’t think he’s got some kind of disease, do you?”

Lucas jumped back away from the body. “I don’t know, man. He could have come off a freighter. I’m going to wash my hands.”

A siren shrieked in the distance as the circle of people moved back from the slain man. No one had seen what happened, but then, Lucas really hadn’t expected any wit nesses. No one had thought a thing of the teen with his skateboard, weaving in and out of the crowd. He backed off more, allowing the talk to swirl around him, and then he simply did what GhostWalkers did best: He disappeared.