She clung to him, pressing her face to his shoulder.

aIam glad it was you,a she whispered.

aYeah.a His hands slid over her back and shoulders, and she snuggled into his warmth. She had never imagined this contentment, this closeness, with another human being.

His lips nibbled against her cheek and her sweat-slick brow.

aWill you sleep with me?a she murmured.

aYes.a She drifted on a gentle cloud, her body cushioned against his.

aIt never would have been like that in my world,a she murmured.

He lifted his head, staring down at her. aWhat do you mean, your world?a he asked.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN.

KENNA SWALLOWED. IN the afterglow of making love, the words had simply slipped out of her mouth, and now she scrambled for an explanation that would sound plausible.

aMy . . . community,a she managed to say.

Talon pushed himself up, giving her a long look. Moments ago shead been relaxed and cozy in his arms. But no longer.

aWhich is where?a Her throat clogged. She longed to tell him, but she knew it wasnat possible.

aWe just made love, and you still canat trust me enough to tell me where you come from?a he said in a rough voice.

She looked down, unable to meet his gaze. She ached to speak honestly, but she had learned that was impossible.

When she remained silent, he climbed out of bed, naked. As he stood looking down at her, she was suddenly very conscious that she was naked, too.

She wanted to ask him to come back. Instead, she sat up, found the covers, and pulled them over herself. At least she wasnat so exposed when she looked at him again. Making love had been magic. Then she had ruined everything. He had expected honesty from her, and she had denied it to him.

He was speaking again, and she struggled to take in what he was saying. aAt dinner I was going to talk to you about something.a Before she could comment, he went on. aI have a trip coming up. Day after tomorrow. I mean, Iall be away from home with a group of men on a canoe trip. Iall be meeting them at a parking area along the Clarion River, and I wonat be back for four days.a aYou want me to leave?a she whispered, unable to keep her voice from quavering, or her body from trembling.

aYou can stay here while Iam gone, if you want.a He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. aBut thereas a complication. That gunshot last week. The guy who did it could be watching the house, and he might get bolder if Iam gone.a He shrugged. aSo you could be in danger.a aMaybe your being away wonat make me less safe.a aMaybe.a Before she could answer, he turned and walked out of the room. Tears stung her eyes, and holding them back was too much effort. The beauty of making love with Talon was shredded around her. Because of the compulsion Vandar had placed on her.

As she lay in bed confronting her misery, she told herself this was for the best. She wanted to stay with Talon forever. But that was impossible. Instead, she would complete her a.s.signment and go back where she belonged.

FOR the next day, as he prepared for his trip, Talon stayed out of Kennaas way. Was he hoping that shead tell him the truth about herself? Or hoping that when he came home shead be gone?

And was that what he really wanted? Did he want her to disappear from his life?

aUp to her,a he muttered.

Making love with her had been . . . He couldnat finish the sentence because there were really no words to describe how good it had been.

But what did that matter? If she couldnat trust him enough to be honest, there was no future for the two of them. Or was he kidding himself about that? Was he stuck with her no matter what? Did the life mate of a werewolf feel the same compulsion he felt? Would it be impossible for her to leave?

He should be worried about the shooter. In his present mood, this was the least of his concerns. Perhaps that meant he wasnat acting rationally.

He took a breath and tried to think through his options. Was there someone who could stay with Kenna? Keep her safe while he was gone?

Could he send her to Ross?

Yes. That might be the solution.

s.h.i.t! Head have to explain why she was so important to him. But head do it, because he wasnat going to leave her here alone.

Unable to deal with his roiling emotions, he doggedly checked his supplies and equipment for the trip and made sure everything was ready.

Often he met his party at the lodge, but this time they were meeting at a parking lot in Ridgeway, one of the places where you could put boats into the Clarion River. He wasnat sure why head made those arrangements. To keep Kennaas presence at the lodge secreta"for her sake? Or because he didnat want to explain what she was to him?

One thing he knew: after the confrontation in the bedroom, shead been avoiding him, just as he was avoiding her.

But he kept turning over that last conversation with her. Shead said aG.o.ds,a not aG.o.d.a Had he heard her right? And what did she mean about aher worlda?

Could Ross answer those questions?

Maybe, but how the h.e.l.l was he going to talk to another werewolf about it?

While he dealt with his own anxieties, he couldnat stop listening for her, even as he lay awake at night. Which was why he heard her tiptoe down the hall at two in the morning, then slip out of the house.

Now what? Was she running away?

His throat closed as he climbed out of bed and opened the sliding gla.s.s door that served as his bedroom window. After pulling off his shorts, he rushed through the chant that changed him from man to wolf. As soon as he came down on all fours, he was out of the house, sniffing the air. It took only moments to locate Kenna. Silently, he followed her into the forest, where she walked rapidly, using a flashlight. Over her shoulder she carried a backpack.

She seemed to know where she was going. To meet the guy whoad buried the money? Had that been her intention all along? And now she was proving her duplicity?

He kept expecting her to rendezvous with the man. Instead, she walked toward a house that was used as a vacation residence by a couple from Philadelphia, Mr. and Mrs. Winslow.

Staying well back, he watched her climb the two steps to the porch and pause at the front door.

He had thought the Winslows would have locked up the cabin, but after a few seconds, Kenna opened the door and stepped inside.

The wolf moved closer, slipping from tree to tree in the darkness. He thought about climbing the front steps. But he decided it was better to wait until she came out and see what developed.

KENNA knew she had to go home. But she had one more thing to do before she left. Teeth clenched, she closed the door. Shead used her telekinetic powers to open the lock, but she hated being in here, and she was going to get out as soon as possible. Still, she had to bring some artifacts from this world back with her, and she would rather steal them from the people who owned this house than from Talon.

Walking quickly through the rooms, she took in the details. The house was much smaller than Talonas, yet it was still luxurious by the standards of her world. She recognized the appliances in the kitchen: the stove, the refrigerator, and the dishwasher. The living room had comfortable furniture, in a much different style than Talon favored. The fabrics had flowers, and there were lots of pillows and knit blankets. In front of the fireplace was a fancy bra.s.s screen.

The two bedrooms were furnished in the style of the living room. One looked like adults slept there. The other had a couple of dolls leaning against the pillows, and toy animals on the dresser. Opening the closet, she found small dresses on hangers. She might have taken one, but they were too pretty to steal, so she stepped back into the hall.

She had thought the bathrooms in Talonas house were luxurious. They were nothing compared to the bathroom connected to the bedroom where the adults slept.

It was hugea"larger than her bedroom back in Breezewood. The tub was enormous, big enough for two people, and there were two sinks, set in a stone top with a cabinet that looked like expensive furniture.

Trying to select things that werenat too valuable, she riffled through the drawers and took a package of soap. In the kitchen, she took a knife, fork, and spoon from another drawer. Then she plucked a book from the shelves beside the fireplace and picked up an old guide to the television programs.

Was that enough? Quickly, she returned to the kitchen and took a can of soup and an old can opener. In the closet by the front door, she took one of the folded-up umbrellas. And from a jar on a shelf, she scooped up some of the coins that they used in this world.

After putting everything into the knapsack shead brought along, she hurried out the front door, locking it behind her.

TALON waited in the darkness. Kenna was in the house less than fifteen minutes. When she came out again, she hefted the knapsack onto her shoulder, and it looked like it was a lot heavier than when shead gone in. She turned back to the door for a moment, then started rapidly into the forest.

Again he waited to find out what the h.e.l.l Kenna was doing. She headed back toward the lodge but stopped several yards from the structure, near the garage where head piled up wood chips to use as mulch. As he watched from behind the trunk of a tree, she looked around, then scooped out a hole in the center of the mulch, set the knapsack inside, and covered it back up again.

Once more she checked to see if she was being observed, then headed rapidly back to the house.

Talon waited in the woods until she had gone back inside the lodge. When the coast was clear, he trotted to the circle of trees where he liked to change. Dressed in sweatpants and a shirt from the box, he went directly to the pile of wood chips, where he scooped away the top layer, uncovered the knapsack, and pulled it out. After brushing the chips back into place, he carried the knapsack back to his room and dumped the contents on the desk.

Kenna had taken a number of items from the Winslow house. A stainless steel knife, fork, and spoon. A paperback mystery novel. An old TV guide. Canned soup. A can opener. A compact umbrella. A few random coins. A bar of soap. Nothing of any real value.

He shook his head as he looked at the collection. What the h.e.l.l did she want with this stuff?

Was she planning to take it away when she left? Ora"

As another possibility struck him, he shuddered. Head thought she might be a con artist. What if this was part of a plan to help the bank robber? The guy could alert the cops to this cache and claim that Talon had taken it.

Did that make sense? He wasnat sure, not in his present state of mind. But he did know that he wasnat putting the knapsack back.

Head like to find out what happened when Kenna discovered it was missing. But probably she was going to make her move while he was gone, and he couldnat change his plans to be there.

He wanted to stride down the hall and confront her, but he was sure nothing had changed. Head only get the same old bulls.h.i.t shead been giving him all along.

He was angry with her. Angry with himself for making love with her. In a way, he was glad he was leaving in the morning, because that got him away from her for a while.

And what about his plan to call Ross? Head be saddling his cousin with a thief, and he sure as h.e.l.l wasnat going to do that. Besides, if Kenna was friends with the bank robber, she didnat need protection.

Again, he wasnat sure about his logic. All he wanted to do was get away from Kenna so he could think clearly. If that was possible.

He left for his trip in the morning, without saying good-bye to her. If she was here when he got back, maybe they could finally get some things straight.

WHEN Kenna heard Talon leave, she felt a mixture of sadness and relief. He was gone. Probably, she would never see him again, because she was going where he couldnat follow her.

For the last time, she took one of the wonderful hot showers that she loved so much. Then she made herself scrambled eggs with ketchup, which had become her favorite breakfast, and cleaned up carefully after herself.

After dressing in the clothing shead worn here, she went out to the pile of wood chips to retrieve the knapsack. When she began to dig, she found the carry bag was gone.

Frantically, she dug in other parts of the loose pile of chips, but as far as she could tell, the spoils of her robbery had vanished.

Great Mother. What had happened?

She couldnat imagine how the items had disappeared, but she knew she had to make other plans. She couldnat go back to the house of the people where shead stolen the objects. Not in broad daylight. Not when someone could see her.

Talon was gone. She could wait until dark, but now that she had made up her mind to leave, she felt an overwhelming need to return through the portal.

Was that her own will? Or was Vandar calling her?

She had no way of knowing.

With a tight feeling in her chest, she went back into Talonas lodge. She had tried to avoid stealing from him. Now she gathered up some of the same things shead taken from the other house. Nothing valuable, she reminded herself. Ordinary items that would interest Vandar.

Simply saying his name made a wave of sickness rise in her throat. If she could have run from him, she would have. But the compulsions in her head limited her choices. She had to go back and face whatever happened.

After taking a few things from the lodge and putting them into another carry bag, she walked rapidly into the woods again, going back to the place she had avoided since her arrival: the portal. Perhaps she was heading for her own destruction, but she hardly cared.

With a feeling of resignation, she pressed her hand against the trigger point that mirrored the one on the other side.

When she touched the cold rock, she felt a vibration under her palm. As the solid surface thinned in front of her, she felt her heart leap into her throat. Even though shead been through it and was prepared, she wanted to turn and run. Instead, she stepped back into her universe.

SHE was gone. One moment Ramsay Gallagher had sensed the womana"somewhere far away. In the eastern part of the United States, he thought. Head decided to travel east and try to find her. Now that was impossible.

Thinking he might be wrong, he put on a burst of energy, trying to reestablish the connection. But he knew it was no good. She simply wasnat there anymore.

Was she dead?

It felt like her consciousness had winked out of existence. Like shead been shot in the heart, and her life had snuffed out.

Should he be relieved?

Or alarmed?

It was a long time since he had been so uncertain, and he didnat like the feeling.

KENNA took a deep breath and let it out. Now the air on her own side of the portal smelled strange, and the landscape made her chest tighten.

She had been living among beautiful, natural surroundings. The gray landscape here was like a jolt of horror.

Six of Vandaras men were waiting for her. As soon as she stepped out of the cave that hid the portal, they surrounded her.

Three were guards, and three were the adepts who had brought her to this place.

All of them kept their distance from her, as though she might have some power that could harm them. Or maybe they thought she had picked up some disease from the other world, and she would contaminate them.

aYouare back,a Wendon said, looking her up and down with a critical eye.

She answered with a tight nod. Had he thought she could escape? Had he been a.s.sessing his own chances to break free from their master?

aVandar wants to see you right away.a aYes.a She had come back because she was compelled to do it. Did he know shead tried to break away?

If so, would she survive the meeting with her master?