Arctic Fire Read online

  He let go of her hand, turning and walking for the door on silent feet as she followed quietly behind him. He gripped the handle as he looked back at the sleeping children and what she saw made her step back slightly with a gasp. His face was a cold mask of violent rage, eyes blazing with anger that she had never seen before in him. “That I’m going to kill every one of those sick fuckers for what they planned to do to these kids,” he replied with such barely suppressed fury, that his voice almost shook with it. He walked away leaving her with shock on her face and fear in her heart. She had never seen him look like that, so dead inside and filled with such hate.

  What have I done?

  ~~~

  Roz walked back into the living space a few minutes later, to find K was nowhere to be seen. She crossed to Mustique who was in the kitchen area, behind the centre island. The kitchen was polished black and white units with black granite countertops. It was something she would go for herself, but as she looked at it she realised how cold and clinical it was.

  “Did you get the others settled?” she asked as Mustique poured them both a glass of water from the fridge.

  “Yes, they are pretty shaken but mostly exhausted and malnourished. I figure we let them sleep and then get them cleaned up tomorrow when they have rested. I also wanted to check to be sure that we have enough food for them all. Rykov is organised, all the cupboards are stocked, so I’ll get something going when they wake up.”

  Roz nodded. “Any visible signs of injury?” Her back tensed as she said it. She’d thought she was hardened to the abuse of others after all these years of seeing how humans treated each other, but tonight had really fucked with her head or maybe it was someone.

  Mustique shook her head. “No, nothing obvious but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been hurt.”

  Roz noticed her friends hand tighten on the glass until her fingernails lost all colour. Misty was as affected as she was.

  Daniel walked out of the bathroom, his jacket was gone, his white, bloodstained shirt sleeve was ripped open exposing the bullet wound on his upper left arm that had been stitched. Megan was curled up in the corner of the couch, her feet drawn up to her chest in a protective way, Daniels jacket around her shoulders. She looked pale and shaken as she buried her head in the jacket as if it soothed her somehow. Roz could see shock was setting in, her eyes were staring out into space as if in a trance. Daniel walked to the bar and poured himself two fingers of expensive whisky and knocked it back in one swallow.

  She could see the tension from here, it was radiating off him. Drew jogged down the stairs, his face was easy to read—rebellion and resentment. Roz rolled her neck knowing that sleep would not be coming any time soon.

  She moved behind Mustique to fill the coffee machine with water, as Zin walked out from the bathroom, where he had obviously been stitching Daniel’s arm. Placing coffee in the machine she searched for cups as she waited for the explosion in the room. It was only a matter of time before it happened. She looked around again for Kanan and resisted the urge to ask Mustique if she had seen him.

  “He’s talking to Zack,” Misty said as if reading her mind.

  Roz turned to deny it and was met with the raised eyebrow and knowing eyes of her friend. The denial died on her lips, knowing she would only make it worse for herself if she protested.

  “Would you care to explain what the fuck happened tonight?” Daniel growled as he advanced slowly on Drew.

  Oh fuck, here come the fireworks, she thought as she poured herself, Zin, and Misty coffee before making tea for Megan. It would be better for her frayed nerves.

  “No!”

  “No?” Daniel said as he moved so that he was nose to nose with Drew.

  “No. I don’t wish to explain.”

  “The fuck you don’t. Megan could have been fucking killed while you were off God knows where.”

  Drew cast Megan an apologetic glance before his jaw ticked and he faced Daniel again. “I didn’t mean to endanger anyone,” he said as he began to pace, his hands grasping and pulling at his hair in a helpless gesture. Roz saw K come back in and take a seat in the chair next to Will, who had his head buried in his laptop.

  “But you fucking did. You disobeyed a direct order.”

  “I had to. I have to find Rhea Winslow,” Drew yelled, his voice raspy with emotion as he came to a stop facing Daniel.

  Daniel didn’t flinch. “I don’t give a fuck if you want to find the Queen of Fucking England. You do not disobey me on a mission. I have no time for lone wolves and people with a death wish,” he said as his eyes landed on her.

  Well fucking excuse, her! He might think Drew had a death wish, she didn’t. But to accuse her was way out of line. She wanted to live as much as the next person. Wow, she really did. For the first time in months, she wanted to live. She felt K’s eyes on her but didn’t turn to look at him.

  “I don’t have a death wish,” Drew denied hotly, his eye held pure hatred as he looked at Daniel.

  “Yes, you do. I’ve seen it before. You want to stop her so badly that you don’t care how you do it.” His voice was firm but quieter as he addressed a still furious Drew. The younger man’s breath heaved in and out as they stayed that way for what seemed like minutes but was in fact seconds.

  “Well, what business is it of yours if I do?”

  “You are under my command and you are one of us, so I’m making it my business, son.”

  Drew snorted at his words and Roz felt a huge weight on her chest for the young man. He was so lost, his face barely containing the raw emotion that showed on his face. He was grieving and confused, and it was hitting him hard.

  “I’m not your fucking son. I’m not your anything. Fuck you, Daniel, and fuck Fortis. I don’t need any of you.” He stormed out of the room, towards one of the bedrooms on this level and slammed the door. Megan visibly jumped, spilling tea on her legs. Daniel rushed to her, brushing it away and she jumped to her feet.

  “Just leave it,” she cried as she ran to the other bedroom.

  “Well this is going well,” Roz muttered under her breath and heard a chuckle from K. She turned to him, grinned, and noticed some of the darkness from earlier had eased but it still flickered under the surface.

  “I’m going to call Celeste,” Zin said as he walked past her, squeezing her shoulder as he did.

  “Give her my love,” K called causing her lips to quirk. He was the same man she had fallen in love with, but in many ways, he was so different.

  Daniel rubbed a hand over his face as he came to sit with them. “What happened Will?” he asked in a more controlled way.

  Will looked up and shrugged. “Rock and stone happened. I kept losing the connection.”

  “But I thought these watches worked anywhere.”

  “They should. I have a friend who is almost as good as me helping, but it seems someone has hacked into my secure network. It’s the same person as before but at least now I know, and I’ve narrowed it down.”

  “How?” K asked.

  “Each hacker has a signature and this one always uses code that ends with the number 121943.”

  “What the hell does that mean to me?’

  “It means our hacker is obsessed with Colossus the supercomputer that helped win the second World War. It was first used in December 1943, hence 121943.”

  “So, by following the other hacks you can figure out who they are?” Roz asked as she leaned forward.

  “In a nutshell, yes,” he said as his eyes flicked up to hers, “but it’s going to take time. I’ve re-secured us, they won’t get in again,” he said with assurance, as he pushed his dark hair away from his face.

  “We have a six am de-brief with Zack on Skype, but the long and short of it is that Usov got away,” Daniel said with a pained expression. Leaning back in the chair, he stretched his legs in front of him, exhaustion clouding his eyes.

  “I won’t leave until he is dead.”

  Roz had opened her mouth to speak but it was
Kanan who’d spoken, the hard, cold almost dead look had returned to his eyes.

  Daniel nodded, his understanding and then stood. “I should go check on Megan, make sure she is okay. Dane will skin me alive if his baby sister gets hurt.”

  Roz wondered who he was saying it for, them or himself.

  “Yeah, I’m turning in,” Mustique said and walked to the stairs.

  “Wait for me,” Roz said as she followed, totally wimping out of confronting the situation and what had happened last night with Kanan.

  When she got to the top of the stairs she turned and looked back down at K, who was now alone in the living room. He looked deep in thought but must have felt her eyes on him because he slowly raised his head, his tired eyes locking with hers. He had the look of a man with a thousand worries on his mind, more than that, he looked tortured. She wanted to go to him to ease his pain any way she could, but how could she when it was probably her that caused it.

  Sorrow filled her as he held the connection between them before his eyes dropped away as he stood and walked out of sight. Roz felt the loss instantly and a panicked feeling filled her chest. She had never hated herself more than she did right then. She wished she could go back and be the woman he needed but regret was as useless as hope, it fed the demons.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Kanan woke at five and gave a loud sigh as he threw the sheet back, giving up on the idea of getting any more sleep—his mind and body were too wired. Thoughts of what he had seen at the Denisovich dungeon mixed with memories of the night he’d found Roz. He suppressed a shudder when he thought about Natalia. It was terrifying that a child that young could hold and control such a gift, although he suspected it was probably more of a curse.

  Doing an ab curl, he sat up and swung his legs to the floor. He felt on edge, every muscle was filled with tension. He stood quickly moving towards the bathroom that was attached to his room. Stripping his boxers, he turned on the shower and stepped into the steamy heat. Thoughts of Roz and what they had shared two nights ago filled his mind as he closed his eyes and let his hand trail over the length of his hard cock, maybe this would help relieve some of the tension in his body.

  Water rained down on his skin as he pumped his hand along his length, strong sure strokes, that came nowhere near to satisfying him. Nothing compared to the feel of her though, her strong lithe body, the tattoos on her arms that hid more than they revealed. Every muscle and mark on her was a testament to her strength and survival, it was the biggest turn on for him to see her strength.

  Thoughts of his Kitten as she had been the other night filtered into his brain making his straining cock ache for release. With two more pumps, he came, his cum hitting the white tile. K cleaned himself up and finished lathering his body in soap. Cleaning himself efficiently and quickly he wondered how long it would be before she had his body screaming for release again and if he would get the chance to feel it with her or if he was destined for a life with his hand as his best friend.

  Stepping out he wrapped a towel around his waist and headed into the bedroom. Drying off, he quickly dressed before heading to the kitchen and a much-needed cup of coffee. When he walked into the open living space and saw it was empty, he blew out a breath, relieved to have the place to himself for a few minutes.

  Apparently, it was just him that couldn’t sleep. Knowing that everyone would be hungry he started pulling out packs of bacon and whipping up a batter mix for pancakes. Cooking had always relaxed him. He wasn’t a good cook, but he could get by without poisoning anyone. He was hunting in the cupboard for a frying pan when he saw Daniel, creeping out of the room Megan had slept in, buttoning his shirt. He glanced up and met K eyes.

  He stopped short, guilt written all over his face before he blanked his expression and walked towards K. It wasn’t his business and if he could find happiness after everything that he had been through losing his wife then who was he to judge. In fact, it seemed to him if people concentrated on love not war then the whole world would be better.

  He felt a humourless chuckle bubble up in his gut, who knew he was a hippie at heart? He almost snorted out loud at that thought. His entire career was war and people determined to kill each other. The thought of himself as a peace-loving hippie was a joke.

  “Do you need some help?” Daniel asked as he moved towards the kitchen.

  K nodded and continued what he was doing. “Sure, can you find another pan and start the pancakes?”

  “Pancakes are my speciality. Paige loves them.” Daniel smiled but then when the door he had left not a few minutes ago opened and Megan walked out, his face went hard as his jaw flexed.

  Oh boy, this was not good.

  When she looked up and saw Daniel and Kanan she blushed to the roots of her hair. The girl had balls though and instead of shying away when she saw the glare Daniel gave her, she walked towards him and brazened it out.

  K flipped the pancakes, trying very hard not to feel like the third wheel, as the atmosphere in the room skyrocketed. He had never been so relieved to see Zin’s ugly mug walk into the kitchen.

  “I thought I smelled bacon,” he said as he snagged a piece from the plate that was now piled with the stuff.

  “Hey,” Kanan said as he whacked him with a spatula. A snicker from across the room made him lift his head to see Roz watching them with a smirk. She walked towards them, her hips swaying as she did, and he fought the urge to grab her and haul her into the closest bedroom. Instead, he asked after the girls. “Did the girls get some sleep?”

  “Yes, some. A couple had nightmares, but that was to be expected.”

  “We have a call with Zack in thirty minutes, then we’ll get these kids home, or at least to safety,” Daniel said as he grabbed a stack of plates. Megan stood beside him plating up pancakes and bacon. They didn’t realise it, but they were working together, with the natural flow of two people who knew each other well. Kanan knew he wasn’t the only one who noticed when he saw Zin raise an eyebrow at Roz, who shrugged her shoulder. Opening the fridge Kanan found maple syrup and butter and placed them on the table. He watched from the corner of his eyes as Roz disappeared a few minutes later. K knew she had gone to check on Katarina and Natalia as she went into the room he had placed the girls in the night before.

  Mustique came down the stairs a few minutes later with the rest of the girls following behind her. She quickly got them seated at the table and pushed food at them. Some ate, while others looked at them, fear, and apprehension in their faces, while they pushed the food around. It gnawed at his gut that these children had been frightened and hurt by sick, evil people for money and the sick appetites of rich men and women. At least they were all clean now and dressed appropriately.

  He looked up and then away as Roz walked down the stairs. Katarina and Natalia were clinging to each hand as if Roz was their lifeline. Roz looked slightly uncomfortable by the kid’s tight grip on her and he smothered a laugh. They made it to the table and Roz urged them to sit but before Natalia sat she saw K and ran around the table to him, wrapping her tiny arms around his waist.

  He looked up in shock to see everyone looking at him. Daniel smiled, Zin smirked, Mustique grinned, and Roz… She had a look he had never seen in her eyes, it was soft and so sad it made his gut ache with a sudden feeling of loss.

  Why did kids keep doing this to him? Did he give off some weird vibe that made kids want to look into his soul and pull out all his vulnerabilities? Slowly he wrapped his arms around the child hugging her back. “Did you sleep okay, Natalia?” he asked, looking down at her face as she looked at him as if he was going to fix all her wrongs.

  The child nodded with a grin, her eyes wide and full of secrets that a child her age should not have. “Yes, and the dreams didn’t come,” she said happily, as she beamed up at him as if he hung the moon.

  “That’s good. Now you need to eat,” he said as he patted her on the shoulder.

  “Okay.”

  Something about her actions, the way
she had trusted him—a virtual stranger—had got to him though she had brought out a protective streak in him that he hadn’t known before. Not even Noah made him feel this way, as if he should be the one to slay this child’s demons. Maybe it was the realisation that he wanted a family and the only woman he wanted it with only wanted to fuck him. Natalia walked back around to Roz and slipped into her seat, before picking up her fork and shoving a piece of pancake in.

  Roz helped the girls, patiently cutting up food for them and helping them with the butter and syrup. She had no idea what an amazing mother she would make, what a truly beautiful person she was. So, determined to hide behind her walls and throw it all away on vengeance and the fear of letting anyone close.

  He threw down the dish towel that he had thrown over his shoulder while he cooked and headed for his room, passing Will as he did, bumping shoulders with the man who looked like death warmed over.

  “Hey!”

  K didn’t have enough control in him to apologise, he would say sorry later. He carried on to his room and shut the door, curbing the childish urge to slam it. This was fucking torture, being around her was killing him. He paced the carpeted floor, hands on his hips as he muttered under his breath. Why did she continue to give him hope, showing sides of herself that made him fall for her even harder, then hide behind her walls? It was complete bullshit.

  He was facing the window, looking out over the awakening city below when he heard the door open, he didn’t turn, he didn’t need to—he knew who it was. Her scent wrapped around him as he clenched his fists, fighting the urge to turn around.

  “K?” she asked.

  Her voice wound its way around his senses and he lost it. Whirling around he grabbed her, pinning her against him, her left wrist held in his grasp as her right arm became trapped behind her as he held her against his body. He knew she could get away if she wanted, he wasn’t holding her tight and he didn’t know anyone better at hand to hand combat than Roz.

  A pulse beat wildly in her neck as he looked into her eyes, anger and lust clouded his brain until he couldn’t take it anymore. He bent his head to hers and took her mouth in a brutal kiss, this wasn’t about seduction, this was about submission. He plundered her mouth, his tongue taking sweeps of her, tasting her sweetness as she kissed him back with just as much desperation.