Way of the Shadows

* * *

THE DOOR TO Lawrence Duncan’s study opened with a rasp of sound. Lawrence glanced up, expecting to see Paula, but she wasn’t in the doorway. Still, he smiled when he saw just who had come to pay him a late-night visit. “I take it that you accomplished our task?”

His visitor took a step inside his study. “Their vehicle won’t be found.”

“Good.” His eyes narrowed as he studied the man before him. “This shouldn’t have happened, you know. I’m supposed to be clear. Instead, I’m cleaning up your messes.” His breath heaved out. “Noelle Evers. She should’ve died years ago, and we both know it.”

The floor creaked as the man edged closer to Lawrence. “I didn’t want Noelle to die this way. I wanted—”

“To cut her throat yourself? Yes, well, I know how you enjoy getting up close, but that wasn’t going to happen.” Lawrence shot to his feet and paced toward the window on the right. When he looked out, he just saw darkness. “She’s not some scared kid any longer. She’s FBI. And if we hadn’t taken her out then—”

His words ended, cut off with a gurgle of sound because—because a knife had just sliced across his throat.

“I was saving her for later.” The words were snarled into Lawrence’s ear. “She would have been special. Now she’s gone.”

Lawrence’s hand flew to his neck, but he couldn’t stop the flow. His knees gave way. He tried to grab for the window curtain, but his bloody hands just slipped over the fabric. He hit the floor.

His eyes were open and staring up at the killer above him.

“You were a threat, too,” the killer told him. “Because you knew what I’d done.” He smiled down at Lawrence. “But you won’t tell anyone now, will you? You can’t tell anyone.” His smile faded away. “And I won’t be on your leash any longer. From here on out, no one controls me.”

* * *

SHE WAS ASLEEP in his arms. Noelle’s breathing was easy and soft, and all of the tension had drained from her body. She was a silken weight against Thomas, and her scent—light and sweet—wrapped deeply around him.

He’d told her that it wasn’t personal. That it was just about survival.

He was such a liar. With her, everything was personal. It had been, for far longer than she realized.

His left arm was still under her head. His fingers were starting to go numb, but Thomas didn’t care. She was comfortable, and he had no intention of moving. He’d dreamed of holding her before, but he hadn’t ever thought he’d actually get this close to her.

Some dreams were so much better in reality.

His lips brushed lightly over her hair. If she’d been awake, he wouldn’t have dared such a move. But asleep...

I’ll make my control hold. It was a good thing she wasn’t aware right then. There’d be no hiding the arousal he felt when she was near.

He figured an hour had passed. The flames were still crackling. They were secure for the night, but he had no intention of closing his eyes anytime soon. With his perfect temptation nestled so closely to him, sleep wasn’t exactly high on his priority list. Besides, he wanted to keep her safe, and keeping Noelle safe meant someone had to stay awake for guard duty.

“Let me go...”

The words were so soft that, at first, he thought he’d just imagined them, but then Noelle began to struggle lightly against his hold. “Please,” she whispered, and the plea cut right through him. “Don’t hurt me.”

Never.

She twisted in his hold, her struggles growing stronger. “Let me go!”

“Noelle.” He knew she was having a nightmare. She’d revealed so much to him in the darkness. “Noelle, you’re safe.” With him, she’d always be safe. He wished she would realize that.

She rolled then, and he eased his hold as she turned toward him. Her body came flush against his, and he was stunned to see her eyes were wide open. “Noelle?”

“I won’t tell,” she said, and her voice was wrong. Too soft. Too lost. “Just let me go.” Her hands pushed against him.

He shifted his body, caught her hands and pinned them lightly to the floor. “Look at me.” Thomas said the words deliberately because he knew Noelle wasn’t seeing him. She was just staring at images from her past.

How often did this happen? How often did she get trapped in the same nightmare?

“Don’t hurt me...”

She was breaking him. Thomas had to make Noelle see what was right in front of her. Damn it, he’d worried when he saw this place it might stir up her past, but he hadn’t exactly been given a choice. It had been this dump of a cabin or nothing, and he hadn’t planned to just stand by while she suffered.

“Noelle...” Her name was a growl of frustration. Then he did the only thing he could—Thomas kissed her.

He’d often thought about kissing Noelle, tasting her. But he’d sure never imagined their first taste would be like this.

Her lips were soft beneath his. He kissed her slowly, carefully. He wanted to pull her back from the past and get her to see the present. To see him.

She stiffened against him as he kissed her. He knew awareness was flooding back for her. He knew he should pull away.

He also knew that he wanted her more than he’d ever wanted any other woman.

So when her lips parted in surprise, he didn’t do the right thing. He didn’t pull back and ask her if she was okay.

He kissed her harder. He thrust his tongue into her mouth, and he savored her. With every movement of his lips against hers, Thomas just wanted more.

He wanted everything.

One day, he’d get it.

Her breasts were pressed to his chest. Her smooth legs were trapped between his thighs. And—

She was kissing him back. Slowly at first then with more passion, with a need he hadn’t expected.

Desire surged within him. Noelle wants me, too. He’d never expected to find the passion hiding behind her fear.

His heart thudded in his ears. He was so close to having her. Only the thin scrap of lace she wore shielded her from him. When he’d first seen the black bra and that tiny bit that passed for her panties, lust had surged through him.

He wanted to touch every inch of her then.

He freed her wrists so he could explore her body. He’d make it good for her. He’d give her so much pleasure. Enough to chase away any nightmares that ever dared to whisper through her mind again.

When he let her wrists go, her hands immediately curled around his shoulders. He kissed his way down her throat. Her pulse raced beneath his mouth, and Thomas had to lick that spot right there. She moaned lightly, and his teeth grazed over the flesh. He wanted her so much his whole body seemed to flash molten hot.

“Thomas?” Desire was in her voice, and he loved the sound of his name on her lips.

His hand was on her rib cage. He wanted that bra gone. He wanted—

Her.

“Thomas...no, we’re partners.” Confusion fought with the desire in Noelle’s husky voice. “I— We can’t.”

Oh, they could. They could do it so well and so long, but Thomas stilled at her words. His head lifted. He met her stare, and he knew she’d read fierce hunger in his eyes.

Her hands seemed to burn against his skin. He was so close to the thing he wanted most. So very close.

Thomas pulled away from her and rose to his feet. His jeans were still a little damp, but he pulled them on. Staying naked with her sure wasn’t an option then. He turned his back to her as he yanked up the zipper.

“I...I didn’t mean to let things get so far.” Her soft voice came from behind him.

He sucked in a deep breath, then glanced over his shoulder at her. She’d sat up and her hands were now curled around her folded knees. Damn. Noelle was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen. “You were having a bad dream.”

Her brows rose at that.

“I kissed you to try and wake you up.” Only she hadn’t been sleeping, not really. He thought maybe she’d had more of a flashback than a nightmare. Thomas cleared his throat. “I’m the one who didn’t mean to let things get this far.” Not yet. He had plans for Noelle, and those plans hadn’t included this pit stop at a rundown shack in the middle of nowhere.

“I don’t remember the nightmare.” Her gaze dropped from his. “But then, I never do.”

He turned to fully face her. The fire crackled behind him. “Maybe it’s good to get a few things out in the open now.”

Her chin lifted as her eyes found his once more.

“I want you.”

“We’re partners—”

“It’s a temporary assignment, and we both know it. Mercer doesn’t plan to keep you in the field. He wants you in the EOD main office, working up your profiles. This is a one-shot mission for us.” So the normal rules weren’t applying. When it came to Noelle, Thomas had no rules. “I want you,” he said again, “and unless I’m mistaken, you want me, too.”

She didn’t speak.

His jaw locked. He’d felt her desire, tasted it. He knew—

“I do,” Noelle said, the words so quiet he had to strain in order to hear them.

His heart seemed to stop at that admission.

“But I know better than to take everything I want. Especially when what I want can be dangerous to me.”

“You can trust me,” he growled. He wasn’t a threat to her. Damn it, yes, he knew the stories that circulated about him at the EOD. That the Dragon was a cold-blooded killer with ice in his veins and that he killed without remorse. That isn’t me. He needed Noelle to see him for the man he truly was.

Her body tensed. “I can’t trust myself.”

He didn’t even know what that meant.

But before he could question her more, he heard the faint roar of—an engine?

He saw Noelle’s head whip toward the door, and he knew she’d heard the sound, too. He grabbed for the rest of his clothes and dressed as quickly as he could. Noelle was scrambling to her feet and pulling on her still-wet clothing.

His fingers curled around his gun. Was that a rescuer coming to find them, someone who’d been alerted by the smoke rising from the old chimney? Or was it the maniac in the truck, coming back to finish them off? Thomas had known the fire would pose risks for him and Noelle. The smoke would give away their location, but staying warm had been a priority.

The roar of the approaching engine grew louder.

Noelle hurried to Thomas’s side. “Stay behind me,” he told her with a firm glare. “Until we find out just who is coming this way.”

“You’re the one with the gun,” she said with a shrug as she lifted her hands. “Letting you take the lead is more than fine by me.”

He cracked open the front door. He could see the bright glint of headlights coming toward the cabin. That roar—it was from what looked like a snowplow. Thomas could just make out its bulk.

He inched onto the sagging porch, keeping his gun at his side. A quick count showed him three vehicles were coming his way, and none of those vehicles looked like the truck that had run them off the road. Actually one of those vehicles—

A siren screamed on. Blue lights flashed.

Right. One of those vehicles looked like a deputy’s car.

More bright lights flooded the scene, illuminating Thomas and Noelle on the porch. Thomas wisely kept his weapon hidden.

Noelle’s arm brushed against Thomas’s side. “We’re FBI!” Noelle called out as she moved forward. They were both supposed to keep using that cover, no matter what.

Doors slammed. Two men ran toward them. “We were hoping it was you,” one of the man huffed out. “I’m Sheriff Glen Hodges. Your FBI boss has been calling our office for hours because you missed some sort of check-in.”

Ah, that boss would be Mercer, and yes, they had missed their check-in. Thomas was actually surprised Mercer hadn’t sent the National Guard after them. When it came to protecting his agents, Mercer was as fierce as any lion.

“We saw the smoke,” the man beside Sheriff Hodges said, as he rocked forward onto the balls of his feet. “No one has been using Brian Lakely’s place in years, so we thought it might be you.”

Thomas advanced toward the men.

“Did you have car trouble?” Hodges asked, shaking his head. “How the heck did you wind up out here?”

“We had car trouble,” Thomas agreed softly. “And the trouble started when some bozo ran us off the road and left us for dead.”

“What?” The shocked exclamation came as the sheriff shot back a good two feet. “But we don’t have trouble like that out here in Camden—”

“Well,” Thomas drawled, “it looks like you do now. Because someone out there just tried to kill two federal agents.” Thomas planned to get his hands on that someone very soon.

Senator Duncan, I’m coming for you.

Chapter Three

“Uh, are you real sure you want to do this?” Sheriff Hodges asked as he slammed his car door and turned toward Noelle and Thomas. The snow was still falling.

They were outside the senator’s home. She and Thomas had insisted they be brought straight over. Noelle wanted to look into the senator’s eyes and see his reaction to their survival. If he was the guy who’d just tried to send them to an icy grave, his reaction would tell her everything she needed to know.

“Senator Duncan...” The sheriff’s voice was cautious. “He has a lot of power around here.”

“We’re not worried about his power.” Noelle brushed past the sheriff and headed for the gate that led to the senator’s property. It was ajar, so she just kept marching right up to the front door. She was wearing a thick coat about two sizes too big, a spare that Hodges kept in his trunk. Gloves covered her fingers, and a big woolen cap swallowed her hair. Thomas followed right on her heels. After what they’d been through, there was no way they’d allow the senator to slip through their fingers that night.

“Maybe you two should go to the local doc’s place,” the sheriff said as he rushed after them. “Make sure you’re not suffering from some kind of trauma.”

Noelle wasn’t concerned about trauma. Before she could slam her fist against the door, Thomas beat her to it. He pounded hard enough to shake the facade.

Lights flooded on from the interior of the house.

“I’m gonna be in so much trouble,” Hodges muttered.

The man needed to grow a backbone.

Eyes narrowed, Noelle focused on the door. When it swung open a few minutes later, a disheveled Paula Quill stood in the doorway.

“Agents?” Paula shoved back her hair. “What are you doing here?”

Noelle advanced and Paula fell back. Noelle figured that counted as an invitation to enter the place. “We’re here to see the senator, now.”

“But it’s the middle of the night!” Paula’s hands tightly gripped the front of her robe. “You can’t just barge in here—”

That was exactly what they’d just done. Noelle glanced to the left and saw a light was on in the senator’s study, and its door was slightly open. Just like the gate. The senator should really watch that tendency to keep inviting folks in.

“The senator is sleeping,” Paula snapped as she moved to stand directly in front of Noelle. “You’ll have to come back in the morning if you want another appointment with him.”

Noelle simply walked around the other woman and headed for the study.

“Sorry, ma’am,” Thomas murmured to Paula, “but this appointment can’t wait.”

Noelle’s steps quickened as she approached that study door. Thomas was close. She could hear him following her. “Senator Duncan,” Noelle called, raising her voice, “I hope you—” She fully pushed open the door, and her words broke off.

Noelle didn’t see the senator in the office. He wasn’t at his desk.

“I told you,” Paula said, voice tight. “He’s asleep. He’s upstairs! Now, leave.”

But...Noelle could smell something in that room. A familiar, gut-tightening scent. Instead of leaving, she advanced. Every muscle in her body tightened.

She glanced over her shoulder and saw Thomas’s eyes were narrowed and currently sweeping over the room.

She looked behind the desk. Looked behind the leather couch...

And saw the body.

“That’s not sleeping,” Thomas said flatly as he peered down at the senator. “That’s dead.”

Paula ran toward the sofa. When she saw Duncan, Paula screamed.

* * *

“OUR CHIEF SUSPECT is dead.”

Noelle glanced over when Thomas made this grim announcement. They were at the sheriff’s station in Camden, in fresh clothes, and the two of them were currently heading the investigation into the senator’s death. When they’d found the body, Sheriff Hodges had pretty much gone into shock.

“Things like this just don’t happen in Camden...” Those had been the sheriff’s hushed words once Paula Quill finally stopped screaming. It had taken at least fifteen minutes to calm down that woman.

To Noelle, it appeared as if the quiet town of Camden was having one hell of a night.

“Yeah, Mercer, I’m sure the guy in the truck wanted us dead. It was no mere hit-and-run. We were targeted.” Thomas turned toward Noelle as he kept the phone to his ear. “My money was on the senator being behind that attack, but with him dead...” Thomas exhaled. “I’m not sure what’s going on now.”

Neither was Noelle.

“Right,” Thomas said into the phone as his shoulders straightened. “We’ll keep the FBI cover, and we’ll report back on everything we find.” He ended the call and tossed his phone onto the nearby desk.

They’d taken over one of the empty offices at the sheriff’s station so they could have some privacy—and a base for their operations.

“Mercer wants us to stay here until we find the killer.” Thomas ran a hand through his hair. “Our FBI cover positions us to lead the case, so he thinks we can control the investigation.”

They could. If Sheriff Hodges called to verify their credentials, Noelle knew Mercer would just pull strings to make sure that verification went through without a hitch.

“Tell me what’s happening,” Thomas said as he crossed his arms over his chest and studied her. “You’re the one who knows killers so well.”

Yes, she did. Noelle cleared her throat. “The senator knew his killer. There was no sign of a struggle, and since none of the alarms were triggered in the house, I’m thinking Duncan even let the guy inside.” A bad mistake. He’d trusted the wrong person. “There were no hesitation wounds on the senator’s body. The knife sliced straight across his carotid artery. The senator...he would’ve been dead in moments.” With his throat cut, the man hadn’t been able to cry out for help. He’d just been able to die.

Noelle forced herself to take a long, deep breath. “I think we’re looking for a man who has killed before.” If it had been the killer’s first time, the attack would’ve been more disorganized. Senator Duncan might have even been able to fight back. “And knife attacks...they’re more personal. Using a knife is a type of intimate kill for many perpetrators.”

His golden eyes gleamed. “So you think the man we’re looking for was a friend of Duncan’s.”

“Friend, relative, maybe even an employee. He was someone who had access to the senator. Someone who could come to his house late at night and expect a meeting.” She wasn’t going to ignore the obvious. “I can think of one main reason for a meeting that late.”

Thomas nodded. “A meeting that probably occurred right after our accident on the bridge.” His hands dropped back to his sides.

Yes, they had both heard the M.E. reveal the estimated time of death.

“We already suspected that the senator didn’t like to get up close with his dirty work. He sent someone in D.C. to attack Mercer, so maybe he sent someone to take care of us, too.” She licked her lips. “Only that someone turned on the senator.” Why? It was her job to find out why. Her job to understand the killers. Their motivations. Their darkness.

“You think we’re looking at a professional.”

“Of a sort, yes.”

“So...” Thomas cocked his head to the right as he studied her. “What will this professional do when he realizes that he didn’t succeed in taking us out? If, of course, he was the one who came after us.”

Well, that was easy enough to answer. “There are two choices. He’ll just cut his losses and get out of town or he’ll try to finish the job.”

Thomas’s lips curved into a chilling smile. “I’d like to see him try.”

* * *

HIS HANDS WERE SHAKING.

The killer glanced down at them. They were trembling again. And even though he’d thrown away his bloodstained gloves, he could swear he saw red on his fingertips.

Duncan’s gone.

It felt so good to be free of the jerk. Duncan had always been controlling him...warning him.

No more.

The sun had risen. The snow had finally stopped falling. It was his day. No more taking orders. No more hiding.

He’d do what he wanted.

The FBI agents were gone. She was gone.

And the senator’s body would be found at any time.

He was free.

The sound of laughter drifted on the wind. The light, musical sound caught his attention. He glanced over at the diner on the right. It had just opened for breakfast. He watched as a young girl—looked as though she was barely sixteen—tried to push back the drift in front of the entrance. She was laughing because the snow kept falling back on her. Her red hair glinted in the light.

He stared at her, remembering the past.

She was so busy at her job she didn’t even see him. The road was empty. The diner always opened first thing. It would be a while before any locals wandered into the place.

He started walking toward her. She didn’t even look up as he approached. He could see her name tag.

Jenny.

Jenny must be new at the diner. He’d never seen her there before.

Then he was just a few feet from Jenny.

Her hair was a deep, dark red. She’d braided it and the braid hung over her shoulder. He was so close to her. Close enough to touch.

Jenny looked up then, and she gasped when she saw him. A hand rose to her chest, and the shovel slipped from her fingers.

He smiled at her. “Morning, ma’am.”

She blinked, and some of the alarm faded from her gaze. That was good. That was real good. He didn’t want her scared. Not yet.

He drew even closer to her. Close enough to catch her scent. She smelled sweet. He liked that. His gaze slid toward the diner. The shades were still pulled. He couldn’t see in. That meant no one could see out.

“We’ll be open in about ten more minutes,” Jenny told him. “The cook’s getting things going now.”

The cook. That would be the big, ex-lumberjack named Henry. But if Henry was getting things going in the kitchen...

Then he can’t see us out here.

And Jenny was so perfect. She reminded him of what he’d lost.

His hand lifted and brushed over her cheek.

Her eyes widened as she sucked in a sharp breath. “Mister—”

“It will hurt, Jenny,” he warned her.

Too late, Jenny opened her mouth to scream.

She never had the chance to make a sound.

* * *

NOELLE WAS ABOUT to fall flat on her face. It took all of the energy she had to climb the steps leading up to their cabin.

This place wasn’t like the one-room shack they’d slept in before. This cabin was more like a luxury resort and as far from the place in her nightmares as possible.

The EOD was footing the bill for these digs, so Noelle was more than happy to escape to the fine lodgings.

She’d been up for over thirty-six hours, minus that one rough hour of sleep she’d gotten while she’d been in Thomas’s arms.

Her gaze slanted toward him. I want you, and unless I’m mistaken, you want me, too. His words kept echoing through her mind.

The problem was Noelle wasn’t used to taking what she wanted. She was used to closing herself off from others. Used to waking from dark dreams she could never fully remember—alone.

“We need to head back to the sheriff’s station at eighteen hundred hours,” Thomas said as he secured the front door behind them. He glanced around the cabin. A spiral staircase led upstairs. “That gives us a few hours to sleep.”