Mack had been her entire world. She'd spent the first year numb--existing--making it through not each day but each hour. She hadn't realized how much she depended on him and how often she'd turned to him for everything in her life. He'd been her other half. She wasn't complete without him. And to know he didn't trust her had been even worse than his rejection of their life together.
Mack had always been the acknowledged leader, but there hadn't been a single member of their makeshift family who hadn't known she had brains. She'd been shocked when he wouldn't give her suspicions any credence. What was she, then? A warm body he could sate himself with? A woman who fed him and kept his house, but should keep her opinions to herself?
"Jaimie," Javier said softly, trying to reason with her.
There was nothing to say, nothing he could say. She went down the stairs to the darkened first floor. She'd had such plans when she first found the building; now they seemed hollow. She had Mack and the others back in her life, but Mack still saw her as a child to protect instead of a partner he could respect. How was she going to be able to face them all? How was she going to stay in the same room with Mack?
She stood in the middle of the room with her hands on her hips feeling lost and alone. The sound of the water lapping at the pier was louder on the first floor. She'd done very little down here, other than to secure the windows and entrances against intruders. This would have been a perfect home for Kane and his chosen wife. Jaimie and Mack in her fantasy world would have lived on the third floor. The second floor would have a few spare bedrooms for the boys when they dropped by and a work area for the business.
She sank down onto the floor and dropped her head into her hands. Of course she'd been thinking they'd all work together. She hadn't even realized that had been in the back of her head. She'd start a company, make it a success; Mack would see the error of his ways and he'd come back to her. What an idiot she'd been. All the time she'd been sure she'd been so independent, but all along, she'd been weaving a fantasy.
Jaimie sighed. She'd grown up in a mostly male world. They stuck together, thinking alike for the most part. She should have known Javier would switch the intercom on and try to get information out of her. He didn't view his actions as disloyal any more than Kane viewed his actions as betrayal. Everything with her family seemed to be done in the name of protection. She wished Rhianna were there. Rhianna was very different, much more of a tomboy, edg ier, but she at least understood Jaimie's point of view.
She pressed her fingertips to her eyes and sat in silence, wishing she was alone again.
CHAPTER 9
Mack stood at the window and stared down into the choppy, white foam-tipped waves as the water lapped at the pier below. Jaimie had left him, all right, but she'd put herself in harm's way because she felt she had to protect them all. He swallowed the lump blocking his throat. That was exactly what Jaimie would do--go after anyone she thought was harming her family. He should have known. Kane had known, but Kane hadn't come to him. Was he really so arrogant and stubborn that he wouldn't listen to the people he cared about most?
He had been so hurt when she left him. He'd been stunned--shocked. Totally caught off guard. And with him, hurt always manifested itself in anger. He'd come home and she was gone. She'd left him with nothing. He hadn't considered that he would ever be without her. That he would go to bed and not be able to sleep. That he would hate his empty house. That he would listen for the sound of her laughter. He hadn't realized how often he turned to her to discuss every topic, how much he relied on her knowledge. Jaimie had been as much a part of him as his breathing. And then she was gone and he hadn't understood why.
Mack pushed a hand through his hair, a little surprised to realize it was unsteady. Stupid pride hadn't allowed him to run after her. That was all it had been. Pride. Ego. Jaimie was supposed to worship him, and he hadn't wanted to believe she could make it on her own without him. He was certain she would come back--only she hadn't. She'd gone her own way and, worse, she hadn't contacted him to let her know where she was. That was painful too, to have to search and go through channels, so everyone had known he'd been frantic, had known he needed to keep a hand on her. That had been humiliating in itself. Sergeant Major had called him in twice and asked him if he could still do his job.
He shook his head. He should have handled things differently. She'd been so traumatized the night of that first interaction with Doomsday. He'd felt so guilty, recognizing that everyone who mattered to him could have been killed. As it was, three had been badly wounded. He had been directly responsible. Jaimie freaking out on him, ranting about conspiracies, hadn't made sense at that time. He was wallowing in guilt, desperate to get medical aid for everyone, including Jaimie. She'd been a mess, her brain bleeding. He'd been certain he was going to lose her too. He'd wanted her quiet.
Mack shook his head, pressing his fingertips to his eyes, unable to even recall exactly what he'd said to her. When she'd fallen silent, he'd been happy, not alarmed. Not warned. And then that quiet question, "Where are we even going with this relationship, Mack? Home? Family? Children? The whole thing is based on trust."
He'd heard children. He'd asked her if she was pregnant. Her expression should have been a warning sign, but damn it all, she was bleeding from her mouth and nose. Even her ears. His mind shut down, refusing to let the image back into his head. He was responsible for that too. What the hell had any of it had to do with a botched mission and wounded men?
He turned abruptly. "Kane. You and Javier finish making that lasagna while I go talk to her. She'd be upset if all that went to waste."
"Whoa there, boss man." Kane drew back, both hands in the air. "I agree you need to talk to her, but I don't cook. And this is everyone's favorite. If I mess it up, one of them is likely to shoot me."
"If she cries because it isn't done, I'll shoot you myself."
Javier grinned at Kane and shrugged his shoulders. "Guess we're cooking. Doesn't this thing have cheese in it?"
"She has all the ingredients right there. I think the two of you can figure it out."
"Why is it you always get the girl, Top?" Javier asked.
"Because you're still wet behind the ears," Mack said.
Kane gingerly picked up a large spoon and stirred the sauce. "It smells good. We probably could shred the noodles and just make spaghetti."
Mack paused at the top of the stairs and glared at them. "You can make lasagna."
Kane winked at Javier. "You got it, boss man."
"She went down to the first floor to be alone, Mack, but don't count on her staying there. She'll be back rigging her computers again. She won't be able to let it go. Hell," Javier said, "I want to go down and work with them and I didn't set off her trap. I'd love to see who these bastards are and how she set the trap for them."
"Thanks, Javier." He waited until Javier looked up at him. "You risked your relationship with her for me. I won't forget it."
"I love her, Mack. We have to protect her. I figure we're all in this together."
Mack nodded and hurried down the stairs. Behind him he heard Kane mutter, "I got a punch in the jaw for being underhanded and I was protecting her too."
Javier's laughter was in Mack's ears as he made the second-floor landing. A single light illuminated the bank of computers and screens. Jaimie stood frowning, bent over, inspecting something intently. He had always loved that particular expression on her face. He knew she was figuring out a problem, just by the little frown lines between her brows. She glanced up at him--of course she'd known he was there--and her expression changed to wariness. He didn't want it to, but that obvious change hurt.
"I've got work to do."
It was a clear dismissal. She'd never really done that before. She'd always been glad to see him and because he knew she was serious, the words cut deep. "We have to work this out, Jaimie."
Her gaze slid away from him. "I know. I'm just not ready yet. I still feel a little raw from the last time."
/> "I don't want to fight."
She shrugged, her fingers moving over the keyboard, her gaze fixed on the screen. "We seem to fight whether you want to or not. I'm not going to agree with you on this, Mack. There's no reason to keep going at each other."
Mack crossed the room, knowing she was aware of his every movement, although she didn't look up again. He came right up behind her and peered over her shoulder. It didn't matter. The code racing across the screen meant nothing to him. It should have bothered him, but he was used to Jaimie and took pride in her abilities.
"I'm staying until I know you're safe, so we have to work this out."
She did look up then. "Really? What do you think is going to happen next, Mack? You'll be sent out on a mission. All of you."
He studied her face. "You believe Sergeant Major is involved."
"I know he is."
He tried not to let the instant anger in his gut surface. He was good friends with Griffen and she knew it. Griffen had been instrumental in Mack making the decision to test for the psychic program in the first place. He'd also been the one to keep them all together. Jaimie had never been comfortable around Sergeant Major, but then, she wasn't military. She loved the boys and Rhianna, but stayed away from everyone else.
Her soft laughter was without humor. "You have such a closed mind. I can tell you're already building arguments against anything I have to say, so really, Mack, what's the point?"
"I'm listening," he replied. She always had been astute in an argument. Jaimie caught nuances others didn't. "It isn't easy to hear bad things about friends."
Jaimie caught up a pen and wrote "Whitney" in the middle of a piece of paper. Above his name she drew a line, put a question mark above that, and drew another line and wrote "White House Who?"
"Someone is giving him a great deal of support. We know that or he wouldn't still be in business. He can pull in GhostWalkers, and military personnel. He can land on military bases. We know he's being protected and even warned when anyone gets too close to him. He has supporters, Mack. Big ones with lots of power."
"I'm aware of that."
"When Kane and Brian both came back from their assignment to Whitney, what did they do? What did they tell you?"
"That there were irregularities. That Whitney was involved in illegal experiments."
"But Kane wouldn't discuss it with you. You're more than his best friend. Brian has looked up to you his entire life, yet he didn't discuss it either."
"No. They wanted to keep me out of it. They were afraid Whitney might target them and didn't want me involved. I arranged a meeting with Sergeant Major Griffen. They reported directly to him. There were two others who came forward as well. A pararescue Team Four GhostWalker by the name of Malichai Fortunes and . . ."
"Antonio Martinez from Team Two, the SEAL GhostWalker team. All of them made their report together to Sergeant Major," Jaimie finished. "But what happened to the chain of command, Mack?"
"You have been digging for information." Mack didn't know whether to admire her or shake her. "Did you see the actual report?"
"It was a closed meeting, Mack, and all of them--and you--trusted Griffen would take it higher and something would be done. The men turned over all their evidence to the sergeant major as they were supposed to. Did you think it strange that Kane and Brian were sent out on a mission alone not long after, when your team always works together?"
Mack shook his head. "Not always, Jaimie." But his gut was churning again, always a bad sign. "All the teams are assigned to support one another at times." But he had thought it strange. The order had raised a red flag in his mind and he'd sent Javier and Gideon as backup. He'd kept that to himself.
"Things didn't go as well as expected."
"They completed their assignment and they made it back."
"And Sergeant Major has sent all of you out on assignments with specific orders on how to run the operation. Brian and Kane were always put in harm's way."
"We all were. That's the name of the game."
A flash of annoyance crossed her face. "That's your problem, Mack. You think this is all some massive chess game. The human lives you're playing with are your family."
"That's such bullshit, Jaimie." Now he was furious. "I keep them alive. I don't take my men blindly into a combat situation. And I don't let anyone else plan my missions, not even Sergeant Major."
"Which is why Kane and Brian are still alive. Fortunately for Antonio Martinez, the leader of Team Two seems to be just as good at planning and so far has managed to keep him alive. As for Malichai, he's been wounded twice. The missions for the pararescue team are much more sensitive and harder to get to, but often only three men are sent out together and unfortunately they have no way of knowing he's a target. He's going to have a difficult time staying alive."
Mack was silent, turning over her information. His every instinct told him she was right. For all he knew, Jaimie might be able to hack into the Pentagon computers. She had skills that were incredible. She wrote programs and codes that others couldn't seem to compete with, and the military used her programs. She could look at a report, a picture, and see inconsistencies or patterns long before anyone else. If she said someone was targeting those four men--there was no question about it.
"You hacked Sergeant Major. Maybe someone else did."
"He reported everything to Colonel Wilford, Mack. Colonel Wilford consulted with someone other than the next in the chain of command, someone I can't get to yet. That man turned over all the evidence to Whitney. He's running the teams and he believes in the GhostWalkers, but he's fanatical the way Whitney is. The end justifies the means. If they lose a few along the way, too bad as long as the end results are the super-soldier they believe is the wave of the future."
"You believe Griffen is actually trying to kill four GhostWalkers." He made it a statement.
"I don't know exactly what he's doing, but he takes his orders from Colonel Wilford and Wilford takes them from someone who consults with Whitney. What do you think? I've studied Whitney. He's very removed from human feelings. He isn't going to kill his soldiers outright. If they die, they weren't good enough to live. But he's going to keep putting them in harm's way because they're the most expendable. He knows Griffen gave them an order. He told them they weren't to discuss what they saw at Whitney's compound with anyone. And they haven't."
"Kane told me there's a breeding program."
"Because the rumor was already going around. Team Two has a woman from the program married to one of their members. That isn't exactly news."
Mack sagged against the desktop. Had he trapped them all in a web of intrigue? He wasn't the intrigue type. Point him at a target and he could take it out without hesitation. He was hell on wheels in a fight, but not this kind of deceit. Friends betraying friends. There was a code of honor. A standard. Sergeant Major was the man who directed his team as well as a personal friend. They relied on each other. Nothing worked if there wasn't honor.
Jaimie moved closer to him. He felt the warmth of her body, inhaled the scent that was uniquely Jaimie. Her fragrance brought back a flood of memories. He wrapped his arms around her before he could think too much about it, and pulled her into his body. There had always been something peaceful about Jaimie he had never found anywhere else. His body always wanted action, but with Jaimie, he found a haven, a place of quiet where he could truly relax, where the coiled tension in his body simply let go.
Jaimie. His refuge. His secret sanctuary that always gave him renewed energy and strength. His everything. She'd walked out on him and he'd been so shaken at the realization that she'd been the one to have the hold on him, not the other way around. He had been determined to live without her unless she'd come back to him on her own. She'd just about killed his ego and pride and everything he believed himself to be. The leader. The untamable. He was not anything he'd believed himself to be.
Jaimie was stiff at first, but he refused to let go, simply holding her, asking not
hing at all but comfort. She relaxed into him, her body all soft curves and heat. He missed her so much. He missed this. Simply holding her. Having her next to him. Breathing her in. When she smiled, everything in his life turned to sunlight. She could make him see the world in an entirely different light. One touch of her fingers on his body wiped out every bad place he'd ever experienced. He'd thought she'd always be there. He'd taken her for granted. It had all been so easy when she was with him.
He buried his face against her soft neck, his hands tunneling through the waves and curls of her hair. Turning his head, he kissed the side of her neck, lingering to savor the feeling of her soft skin and the scent of her.
For a moment, Jaimie leaned into him, but as if catching herself, she pulled herself straight, almost rigid, and stepped away from him. Mack looked down at his hands for a moment, working at keeping his mind and body under control. Abruptly, he changed tactics.
"I want you to do a little experiment for me, Jaimie." Mack sank back onto the computer desk. "I want you to find each of the men. All of them. Exact position."
"Why? You know I can."
"But not Gideon or Spagnola. I want to find out why. If there are two of them, there could be more. I need to know. And I don't want the others to know. Don't document it."
"Or tell Sergeant Major?"
Shadows crept into his eyes. "No one."
"Whitney would take them, wouldn't he?" Jaimie guessed.
"I believe he would and if you're right and Griffen is working with him, then he can't know. We'll figure out how they're hiding from you ourselves."
"It has to be their energy, Mack. Nothing chemical or genetic that Whitney did to them. I read energy. I can feel how someone is feeling. For instance, Javier and Kane are upstairs in the kitchen area and they're amused. It's genuine amusement." She shared her first real smile with him since he'd come to talk to her. "I fear for the lasagna."
"They'd better not do any of the things they were suggesting," Mack said.
Jaimie sat on the computer desk beside him and swung her feet. "I'll bet both Joe and Gideon have similar psychic abilities and something they have naturally protects them from me reading their energy. And if they have a natural protection, someone else will too. Of course, no one will know it because as far as I know, no one else can pinpoint location in the same way I can. That's why Whitney was so interested in getting his hands on my data and why Joe is protecting me."