They've poisoned him again. Sons of b.i.t.c.hes. How many times can they keep doing this to us?

She knew the answer, of course. Nova would continue to use them until he didn't need them anymore. Then they'd end up dead someplace, just two more unsolved murders in a city full of them.

"Tal called," one of John's guards said. "He's on his way. We're supposed to keep the girl out here until he gets here."

"Sorry. We've got other plans." Before Leah knew what was happening, one of the men who'd taken her from her cell pulled out a gun and fired two shots. Blood splattered the walls as John's two guards fell to the floor.

"Let's get the h.e.l.l out of here." The men grabbed Leah and pulled her away from John's cell.

"Wait!" She tried to break free but they held her tight. "He needs my help! He's dying." She saw John pressed against the gla.s.s, pounding on it with both fists.

"Too bad. Our orders are to get you out of here, n.o.body else."

Leah kicked and screamed as the men dragged her to the end of the hall and out a small side door that opened onto what had once been the loading dock. Three more men waited next to an unmarked gray van, their faces cloaked by the night. It was only when she got close that Leah recognized one of them, an average-sized man with mousy-brown hair.

"You were the one at my clinic that night. With the dog. You work for Tal Nova."

"Not exactly," the man said. "I do jobs for him on occasion; but I work for myself. You might say I'm an independent contractor."

"You have to let me go back inside, there's someone dying in there. I can help him."

The man shook his head. "Believe me, Doctor, I know exactly what you can do. That's why I'm here. You're going to make me a very rich man." He motioned for his men to open the back doors of the van.

Leah muttered a curse as she fought to break free. Did everyone know about her abilities? "If you don't let me go back, I won't help you."

The man held up his hand and everyone stopped moving. "What do you mean?"

"You said you know what I can do. Well, you can't make me do it. I control it."

The man shrugged. "Then maybe a bullet or two in the right places will convince you."

"And what if it doesn't? You'll kill me? I'm no good to you if I'm injured or dead."

For the first time, the man's face showed emotion. His lips grew tight and his eyes narrowed. He stared at Leah for a moment, and then swore. "G.o.ddammit. You did a hit for Nova."

Leah stared back at him. "That's right. Because he injected the man I love with poison. The same man who's going to die soon if I don't get back in there. Without John, I wouldn't have done s.h.i.t for Nova." She knew she was putting John in danger again, basically moving from one frying pan to another, but at least he'd be alive.

"d.a.m.n it to h.e.l.l." The man signaled his people to move back to the loading dock doors. "Let's go. This isn't finished yet."

"Del, we don't need him. We can find someone else-"

"Quiet." The man named Del pointed at the stocky thug who held Leah. "Keep her here. Don't come in until you get the all clear."

The man nodded and tightened his grip on Leah's arm as the rest of the group headed inside.

Thirty seconds later, the angry sound of gunfire reached them.

"What's going on?" Leah asked, her head filling with visions of the mousy-haired man shooting John.

"Shut up." Her guard maintained his grip, but with his other hand he pulled out a gun and aimed it at the loading-dock doors.

"We have to go in!" Panic rose in Leah's chest.

"I said shut up!" The man gave her a shake, just as Leah tried again to pull free. This time it worked, and she found herself stumbling away. Before the man could do anything, she found her balance and ran for the door.

"Hey! Stop!"

Leah cringed, antic.i.p.ating a bullet in the back, but didn't stop running. Instead of the explosion of the gun going off, she heard pounding footsteps behind her. She threw open the door and burst into the hallway, just in time to see one of the stranger's men turn in her direction, gun in hand. There was no time to stop or yell; she could only watch helplessly as bright light flared from the front of the gun and a deafening roar filled the air. A split second later, something hot stung her cheek, followed by a buzzing sound in her ear.

"Don't shoot!" the man behind her shouted.

After that, everything seemed to slow down to quarter speed. Images clicked through her head like a slide show.

Someone running past her.

Raising her hand to her cheek.

Staring at her blood-covered palm.

People on the floor.

A white tile smeared in red.

The last picture faded to black, and Leah wondered who'd turned off the projector. Turn on the lights, she tried to say, but her mouth refused to move. Something cold hit her face, feeling good against her skin. How did I get sunburned on one cheek? Who's holding the wet cloth for me?

Far away, someone called for help. Something about a man being shot.

I can help him, she thought. That's my job. I Cure the sick with a touch. My name is Jesus.

Wait. That doesn't sound right.

My name is Leah. I'm here to help someone. Someone named...

"John!" Leah opened her eyes, saw she was lying on the floor next to a dead body.

With a gasp, she pushed herself away and sat up. The memory of being shot came back to her, and she raised a hand to her cheek. No pain now, just smooth, undamaged skin.

No time to worry about that. Have to help John.

She got to her feet, but someone grabbed her leg. Looking down, she saw the mousy-haired man who'd tried to kidnap her.

"Help me," he said, his words coming out in a hoa.r.s.e gasp. The reason for his pain was obvious; blood poured from a bullet wound in his leg. Based on the flow, Leah figured the bullet had nicked his femoral artery, possibly cut it in two.

"Please. I..." His eyes closed and his head fell back.

d.a.m.n! All she wanted to do was save John. But she couldn't let a man bleed to death. Telling herself she was a fool, Leah knelt down and placed her hands over the wound. An electric shock ran through her, and the man's body twitched as if from an epileptic seizure.

The moment the pain pa.s.sed, Leah pushed herself to her feet and ran for John's door. When she got to it, a sick feeling ran through her. Although he was still standing at the window, watching everything, his face was drawn and pale, and a heavy sheen of sweat covered his skin. Worse, a heavy bilious green glow covered him, a glow she knew no one else could see.

The poison's kicking in. Not much time left. "Hang on!" she shouted.

She grabbed the k.n.o.b but it wouldn't move. Her fear kicked up another notch. It wasn't fair! She was there to save him, but couldn't get in.

John banged on the gla.s.s and pointed past her.

Leah turned and looked. All she saw were dead bodies and a couple of the stranger's men helping him to his feet. Then it hit her.

One of the dead guards had to have the keys.

Leah dropped to the floor and tore through the dead guards' pockets until she located the keys. It took her three tries to find the right key, and even then her hands shook so bad she had trouble inserting the key and turning it. As soon as she unlocked the door, John pushed it open and stumbled out. He went to put his arms around her, and instead ended up clutching at her shoulders as his legs gave out underneath him.

Staggering under his weight, Leah did her best to lower him to the floor without dropping him. He tried to speak, but she put a finger to his lips. "Quiet. You'll be better in a minute."

She focused on John's pallid face, thinking only of Curing him. The moment she put her hands on his cheeks, the pain of the Cure hit her like a heavy fist to the stomach. She cried out and nearly fell over. At the same time, John's body convulsed so hard his shoulders and head left the floor and then crashed down again. Nausea filled Leah's body, and she barely managed to turn her head before her coffee came up in violent fashion. Before she could regain her breath, a second round of vomit exploded out.

After her spasms subsided, she found the nausea had faded to a manageable level. She wiped her mouth on her sleeve and turned back to John, just in time to find him pushing himself to a sitting position.

"Thank G.o.d you're all right!" She wanted to throw her arms around him, cradle her head against his chest, but she knew better than to touch him.

It never occurred to her that she'd already touched him after Curing the gunman, and nothing had happened.

"No, thank you. Again." His voice sounded weak, but the green glow had disappeared and color was already returning to his face. "What about you? Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine. I'm just a little shaky." She stood up. "We should get out of here before Tal's men come back."

"Sorry, you folks aren't going anywhere."

Leah turned, saw the mousy-haired man and one of his men standing nearby, both with guns in their hands. She silently kicked herself; in her frantic hurry to cure John, she'd forgotten about the men who'd tried to kidnap her.

The mousy-haired man's companion stepped forward and took Leah by the arm. "Let's go, little lady."

Before she realized what was happening, the Power surged up inside her, begging for release. Leah grabbed the man's hand and let the sickness flow out of her. This time the electric shock of the transfer was even worse, wrenching a scream of pain from her that the armed man echoed as they both fell to the floor.

"What the...?" For a moment, the mousy-haired man just stood there, his eyes wide, as blood exploded from his partner's leg and vomit spewed from his mouth. But the man's surprise didn't last long. He brought his gun up and around, his expression already changing from shock to anger.

And found John kneeling on the floor, pointing a gun back at him.

"Drop it," John said, his voice no longer weak.

The man's hand twitched ever so slightly, just enough to point the gun at Leah, who was still trying to sit up. "I'll kill her."

Instead of answering, John pulled the trigger. The sound of the gun drowned out the man's cry, but Leah saw the effects as the man dropped his gun and clutched his arm.

"Next time it'll be in the chest." John's hand stayed perfectly still as he spoke. "You've got five seconds to get the h.e.l.l out of here and never come near us again. One...two..."

Before John reached three, the mousy-haired man turned and ran for the loading-dock door. The moment the door closed, John pulled Leah to her feet. "Let's get out of here before anyone else shows up."

"Why didn't you kill him?" Leah asked as they stepped around the bodies and headed for the door. "He would have killed both of us."

"If I'd thought that, he'd be dead right now. But he was bluffing."

"How could you know that?"

John opened the door an inch, peered outside. "Because you're no use to them dead, and you're no use to them if I'm dead. C'mon, it's clear."

They stepped out onto the loading dock and Leah saw the van was gone. "What do we do now?"

With a tired smile, John pointed at the stairs. "First, we start walking. As soon as we find a phone, we'll get ourselves a ride, and we'll do what you should have done in the first place."

"And that is?"

He gave her a look that was part joking and part serious. "Get the police involved. All of this could have been prevented if you'd just told me the whole story from the beginning."

Leah shook her head. "It would've meant telling the whole world about my secret. I couldn't do that. I still can't. If Tal or those other people get caught, their testimonies, the films, it'll all end up as evidence and get made public."

John took her hand as they walked across the loading-dock parking lot. "Maybe, maybe not. The important thing is that you'll still be alive, and the people who're after you will be behind bars."

"You really think that would be the end of it? Look how much trouble I've caused with only a few people knowing. Now imagine if the whole world knew. How many people would be after me then? How many governments? I'd never be safe."

Leah pulled her hand away and rubbed tears from her eyes. He doesn't understand. He can't; no one can. I'd rather be dead than live my life on the run or like a lab animal.

"Leah, I-"

The sound of squealing tires interrupted John as a police car tore around the corner, lights flashing, and then skidded to a stop at the end of the lot. Two Hispanic officers, both of them in plain clothes and NYPD windbreakers, opened their doors and waved. The driver called to them.

"Hurry up, you two. Nova's men are on the way and we want you out of here before the shooting starts. Rapido!"

John waved back and then took Leah's hand again. "Let's go. For once, it looks like something's going our way."

Following John, Leah had to admit the sight of the police car was an unexpected comfort. Then thoughts of her secret getting out to the world returned.

We're safe now. But for how long?

Chapter Twenty-Two.

Emilio Suarez shut the back door of the police cruiser and silently congratulated himself. He'd come up with the idea for stealing the car after learning that Nova had kidnapped the lady vet's boyfriend, who was a local cop in her hometown.

Who's a cop gonna trust, no questions asked? A fellow cop! he'd thought, and, sure enough, the cabrn had gotten right into the car, smiling and saying thank you all the while. At least the lady had the brains to look nervous, even though she'd followed her boyfriend like a dog on a leash.

As soon as Emilio climbed into the front pa.s.senger seat and shut his door, Hector Reyes, the man Emilio had chosen as his driver, put the car in gear and headed away from the warehouse as fast as possible.