Time Thief (The Anomaly Trilogy) Page 10
Everything about Mara Ross stirred something in Cal long gone cold.
A luxury he couldn’t afford.
Mara looked past him to Leven’s motionless guards. They kneeled on the ground staring ahead like robots.
Her mouth dropped open. “You’re raiding all three of them.” Her gaze swung to his face. “That’s…impossible.”
Not something he intended to discuss. An ugly bruise was forming on her cheek. “Who hit you?” He lifted a hand and skimmed his fingers down her cheekbone.
Her eyelids fluttered. “It’s nothing.”
“Who?” Heated fury punched through his veins although he let none of it bleed into his face. He’d had years of practice at keeping his feelings hidden.
She angled her head. “Blondie over there enjoys hurting people.”
The man in question clutched his head and let out an agonized scream. He slumped to the floor and was silent.
“My God.” She took a shaky step forward.
“He’s not dead.” Cal stared dispassionately at the man. “But he’ll be unconscious a long time.”
She looked up. “What are you?”
A nightmare. He looked away. He didn’t want to see fear in her emerald-green eyes. “Did you find the soul stealer?”
She released an impatient breath. “Her name’s Cate. And no.” Mara turned, eyeing the bloodstained table. “She was here but they moved her.”
Cal’s gaze ran over the corpse in the corner. The man showed the classic hallmarks of having had his soul ripped from his body. They said it was the most excruciating way to die.
“How’d you know I was going to be here?” Mara asked.
He kept tabs on her. Had ever since she’d made Haven her home. Not that he’d ever tell her. “An informant mentioned Leven was here. Figured you wouldn’t be far behind.”
She kicked a chair at the table, sending it skidding across the floor. “I can’t breathe knowing that bastard has an innocent. Is forcing her to kill.” Mara’s gaze fell to the blood pooling on the floor.
Cal knew she’d once been at Leven’s tender mercy. He didn’t know what the crime boss had done to her, but he saw the terrible shadows in her eyes. They matched the ones staining his own soul.
“I’d almost convinced Cate to come to Haven. I was this close.” Mara held her fingers a whisper apart. “If only…” her voice drifted off.
“You aren’t to blame.”
She tossed her head back. “I know. I’m more than happy to heap the blame at Leven’s feet.”
“We need to go.” Cal headed for the door.
She matched his stride. “If we’re quick enough, we can find them before they leave London.”
He stopped and held out his arm. She ran into it. “We have no idea where they’re headed. We need to plan, tap our informants—”
Her jaw clenched. “You’re too cautious.”
Callahan was used to people—especially women—being afraid of him. But Mara was too stubborn to let anything or anyone scare her. She was one of the few people who dared to question—or outright ignore—him.
“And you’re always leaping.”
Her chin lifted. “If we sit around planning, Cate will die.”
Cal backed Mara into the wall, watched surprise skitter over her face. Their bodies brushed and damn it, his responded to the feminine feel of her. It made his tone harsh. “You need to learn to follow orders.”
Fire sprinted through her eyes. “You certainly love issuing them.”
Her lips were so close. “Haven provides sanctuary and protection for anomalies. It only functions because we have rules.”
“Your rules,” she spat.
He leaned closer and their chests pressed together. He loved that she was tall and almost looked him in the eyes. “Yes.”
“Let me go.” There was a barely detectable tremor in her voice.
“Not before you listen to me.” Jesus, she made him want things he couldn’t have. “Most of the people at Haven can’t survive outside of the island. They’re hunted by governments, criminals and anyone else who knows about their abilities. They’re shunned by their families and friends. Freaks of nature who can stop time, control minds and kill with a touch.”
She swallowed. “I know.”
“If we don’t follow the rules, men like Leven will overrun us and turn us into unwilling slaves. Is that what you want?”
She struggled against his grip. “I refuse to leave a woman in that man’s grasp—”
“We won’t leave her. But we won’t take unnecessary risks either.”
“I want—”
Cal leaned in and pressed his mouth to her ear. Her scent hit him. No delicate flowers for Mara, instead something darker, more sensual. “I don’t care what you want. If you race in without planning, you’ll end up in Leven’s chains just like Cate Hartmann. Do you want to be tortured again?”
She trembled and remorse tore at him. Sometimes he had to be tough, had to make hard choices, but he hated making her relive what haunted her.
He released one shoulder and cupped her jaw. “Mara—”
She jerked away from him. “You’re a bastard.”
He sighed. “I know.”
A loan groan from behind them had them both tensing. Cal spun, pushing Mara behind him. When she stepped back up beside him, he cursed.
The dead body in the corner moved.
They both froze, gazes glued to the corpse.
The man’s eyes were still clouded with death, but his head turned, his mouth opening. “Celebes.”
Other Books by Anna Hackett
The Anomaly Trilogy
Time Thief
Mind Raider
Soul Stealer
Science Fiction Romance
Winter Fusion
The WindKeepers Series
Wind Kissed, Fire Bound
Taken by the South Wind
Standalone Titles
Savage Dragon
Hunter’s Surrender
One Night with the Wolf
Anthologies
A Galactic Holiday
For more information visit www.annahackettbooks.com
About the Author
Mining Engineer by day and writer the rest of the time, Anna Hackett grew up an avid reader with no dreams of being a writer. Her career in mining has taken her all around the world and sparked her desire to write.
As a teenager, she raided her mother’s romances and her father’s action adventure books, so no surprise that her stories combine both. She especially loves reading and writing short stories—the perfect intense read to fit into a busy lifestyle—and teaches the writing workshop, Short Story, Big Impact. When she isn’t wearing boots and a hard hat, she’s at her computer drinking too much Diet Coke and working on her stories.
Along with her husband and son, Anna lives wherever her mining career takes her. She’s always delighted to hear from readers.
You can find her in the usual places:
Website and blog – www.annahackettbooks.com
Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads
New Release Newsletter
Go back to Contents
Table of Contents
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Excerpt from Mind Raider
Other Books by Anna Hackett
About the Author
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