Page 17 of Phantom’s Mate

That stabbed him in the heart. Not Britt. Even though he’d entertained the idea of her being a halaika, deep down inside he really didn’t believe it. He didn’t believe she was a malevolent spirit, either.

She was a decent person who was stuck in a bad situation. And he wanted to help her.

Even more than you want to find Jax? that annoying little voice asked him. What if he gets away with the artifacts while you’re messing around with a ghost?

Fuck you, voice. He’d deal with that when he had to.

The whole reason he’d become an agent was to protect innocent people. And right now, one of them needed him.

Maybe, in his own small way, he could still be somebody’s hero.

Nick clapped Titan on the shoulder. “Thanks for coming out and trying. See you later.” And he crossed back over into the night.

Chapter 9

Nick walked back around the bend, looking for Britt sitting by the roadside. If she’d been somehow pulled into their near-accident and gone through another reset, that’s where she’d be, all Krakened out.

She wasn’t there. So that was a good sign, right?

But the unease inside him didn’t lessen.

If she wasn’t here, she was probably in the cabin she’d created. Nick scanned the woods in the direction she’d indicated yesterday, and caught a glimpse of a light. He started up the hill.

The cabin was only a few minutes’ walk. The light inside was dim and flickering, like it came from a fireplace.

Nick knocked softly, and then his panther hearing picked up the sounds of muffled sobbing from inside. Something in his chest cracked at the sound.

He opened the door. The inside of the cabin was cold, despite the fire, and covered in dust and cobwebs. Most of it looked like it belonged to a teenager who hadn’t quite outgrown her childhood—except for the uncomfortable-looking ultramodern couch, which, oddly, appeared clean and brand-new.

Huddled on the couch was the Kraken, sobbing like her heart was breaking.

Before he realized he was moving, Nick was across the room, his arm around her shaking shoulders. In a gentler voice than he’d known he possessed, he said, “Hey, hey, it’s okay. You’re okay. Come on.”

“It’s not okay,” Brittany wailed. “Oh, God, Nick, I think I killed somebody!”

Oh, hell, she had been pulled into what happened with him and Titan.

“No, you didn’t. It’s all right.”

“No it’s not!” Between sobs, she said, “I was here in the cabin, reading, and then I felt this horrible feeling like I was being sucked into a tornado. Then I was in the middle of the road, and I saw a car coming down the hill, all dim and misty like it was in the other world. I tried to get out of the way, but I couldn’t—and some kind of magnetic force was coming from me, pulling the car right toward me.

“It went—it went through me, headed straight for the tree, and just before it hit I saw the white light and everything reset and I couldn’t even look. I just ran up here and tried to put my cabin back, and I’m a coward and a murderer and I don’t know what to do.”

“You’re not a murderer. Look at me.” He cupped her chin in his free hand and turned her face toward him. “That was me and my friend you saw coming down the hill. We did get pulled in here for a few seconds, and we were headed for the tree, but we didn’t hit it. We’re fine. Everything is fine.”

She stared at him, those amazing green eyes wide, tears glistening like diamonds on her long, dark lashes. “Really? You’re not just telling me that?”

“Really.”

“Oh, thank God.” She flung herself into his arms.

He closed them around her, not caring that the wet Kraken costume was soaking his shirt, along with her tears.

She felt amazing, even through all those tentacles. And she smelled incredible, like sunny green forests and spring and vanilla. His panther gave a little purr.

After much too short a time, she sat up, wiping her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I was just…” She shivered, and said in a small voice, “I was so scared I hurt someone.”

He’d smelled her fear, and he could feel her sincerity. This was no halaika, and no malevolent spirit.