Born of Fire

And he was tired of it.

Stepping back from her, he pulled on a pair of black gloves, then handed her a matching set.

Shahara wanted to curse as she saw the veil come down over his face. He’d retreated back into himself and she had no idea why. Disappointed, she accepted the gloves, noting the little bubbles of hard-formed plastic that lined the palm and fingers. Tracing some with her finger, she looked up with a puzzled frown.

“We’re going to rappel down the side of my building. Those should keep you from slipping.”

Her body went cold. “Rappel?”

“Just don’t look down.”

Her stomach shrank at the thought. “You are one seriously sadistic bastard, aren’t you?”

“It comes with being a Wade,” he said in a tone so low she wasn’t sure she heard it.

Never in her life had she wanted to reach out to someone more than she did him right now.

You are not your past, Syn.

But her words wouldn’t reach him and she knew it. He was the kind of man who only believed in actions. Not lip service.

And she was going to have to betray him.

Pushing the thought aside, she followed him out of the shuttle.

In just a few minutes, they were headed down a dark, quiet street. The moon had taken refuge behind a group of clouds, and the outside landscape showed up only in spots where streetlights made tiny puddles of butter-colored light to help guide them. Vik soared up to scout the area in front and behind them, looking for anyone who might threaten them.

Wind whistled through the alleyways between the buildings with an eerie cry. Goosebumps sprang up all over her and she wished she’d thought to bring a jacket. Clenching her teeth to keep them from chattering, she stayed one step behind Syn.

“What time is it here?” she asked, her voice seeming overloud after the quiet.

“About three in the morning.”

“It’s rather creepy out here, isn’t it?”

Syn paused for a minute and looked around the deserted city streets before he shrugged. “Not really. I always preferred this time of night. It’s peaceful. Even the worst predators are usually asleep or home by this hour.” He gave her a strange look. “Except for filches. We do our best work after dark.”

He headed into an alley. She watched as he climbed to the top of a Dumpster, then he held his hand out to her. Accepting it, she allowed him to pull her up to stand beside him so that they could balance on the edge of its lip, above the garbage.

An instant later, he pulled a grappling hook out of the small black plastic pack he must have strapped to his arm while she’d slept. He shot the hook upward toward the building’s roof, where the prongs exploded and it vanished over the edge. After it landed, Syn tugged on the rope, testing the line. Her mouth went dry at the sight of his steely, cat like muscles beneath the tight bodysuit.

And before she could blink, an image of his naked body flashed before her eyes, sending a most inappropriate wave of desire crashing through her.

Syn wrapped the cord around his torso and looked at her. “C’mon,” he said, pulling out the thick strap he’d used to tie them together the last time they’d scaled a building. “I’ll help you up. But you’re on your own once we reach the destination.”

“No problem.” She noted the seriousness of his tone. He wasn’t the same man who’d teased her before. He hadn’t been the same since his confrontation with Caillen, and she wondered how long it would be before he returned to the Syn she’d grown to care for.

Saddened by the thought, she stepped into his arms. His embrace was cold, mechanical.

Syn’s breath caught as the heat of her body warmed his. Standing here, it was hard to let his rationale reign, especially since all the blood in his head was rushing south.

I should have never slept with her. All that had done was whet his appetite for more and make him crave things he couldn’t have.

Dreams were lies manifested by worthless desires. And the last time he’d made the mistake of giving himself over to a woman, she’d stabbed him straight through his heart. Twisted the knife and left him bleeding.

If only those wounds were fatal.

Get the map, the disc, and get her out of your life. Then he could go back to . . .

Hell.

But at least he knew the rules there, and people’s misconceptions of him didn’t hurt.

“Hold tight.”

She complied and they raced toward the top.

Once on the roof, he freed her. “We’ll have to vault three buildings over before we hit the right roof.”

“Do you think the Rits will be expecting us?”

He retracted the grappling hook back into its case. “I don’t know. I couldn’t get a decent sat link to check. But the good news is they can’t get one on us either.” He tapped the link in his ear. “Vik? Report.”