Brody glared at him. “That’s not funny.”

  “Of course not,” Terk said, “but there is absolutely no way that you can stand here and tell me that she doesn’t matter to you.”

  Brody felt an unsettling knowing inside. “No, I guess I can’t.”

  “Exactly. Because she does mean something to you, and that’s not a bad thing. The fact that she does mean something to you also is important because we don’t know where and how this will end. If she means something to you, you’ll also help look after her. It’s a partnership, and you will help keep her safe through all this.”

  “I hadn’t really considered that either,” he muttered. “I can’t though. Not right now.” He stared out in the distance and then looked down at the men on the ground. “So, will we just stand here with these idiots, or is there a plan?”

  Just then Terk’s phone buzzed. He looked at the message, smiled. “Nope. Safe to leave now.”

  “Wait. … Why? Why are we leaving these douchebags here like this?” Brody asked in surprise. “I’m not comfortable with that.”

  “Neither am I,” Terk noted. “However, Charles has offered to step in, and he’ll take care of it.”

  “Even though he’s on their shit list?”

  “Maybe because he’s on their shit list,” Terk replied. “We do have to give the guy a chance to deal with the bad apples in his own house.”

  “I guess,” Brody agreed, “but these guys won’t stop anytime soon.”

  “Nope, they won’t,” Terk said picking up their bags, “but I think Charles knows that it’s his problem.”

  Brody walked back outside and asked Terk, “Where to now?”

  “Well, this stop took a little bit longer than I thought it would,” Terk noted. “And considering we have ice cream in the truck, I say we better head straight home.”

  “Ice cream?” he muttered, as he shook his head. “Who would have thought that ice cream would ever be dictating our actions?”

  At that, Terk burst out laughing again. “Oh my God, it is so good to have you guys up and alive and doing well.”

  “I guess it was pretty rough for a while there, wasn’t it?”

  “It was more than rough,” he admitted. “Jesus, knowing that our friends were all suffering, and I could only do a limited amount for any of you was pretty painful.”

  “Sorry, but thanks for keeping me alive and for hiring both Clary and Cara.”

  “Not an issue,” he said. “You know I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

  And that’s the thing—because they were friends and they worked in the same field and they did the same things—Brody knew that’s exactly what Terk would do. “I still don’t understand why you didn’t go down,” Brody noted.

  “I’m not sure about that either,” he murmured. “And that’s something I’m trying to get to the bottom of. I think it was EMP related and short circuited my energy. In a way saving me.”

  “Any update on Celia?”

  “Not yet.” Terk sighed heavily. “Ice tells me that she’s awake but still doesn’t appear to remember anything. I’ll have to check in on her, but I haven’t really had the energy to do so.”

  “In what way would you check on her?”

  “I want to know if she’s cognitively all there or if they’ve done something else to her. Physically she’s getting better …”

  “Ouch. That would be pretty rough.”

  “You have no idea,” Terk said. “These guys are assholes, and their minions are dropping like flies around us. But there’s always more assholes to take their place. We need to come to a happy ending with this on a permanent basis. I’ve had more than enough trouble getting them to stop their attacks on us. Just how does Texas connect? At the moment the circumstances appear to be completely unrelated, but that hardly seems possible.”

  Brody understood that Terk’s frustration knew no bounds.

  Terk added, “The time is right, now to put an end to it. They can’t hurt you guys anymore, and that’s what I’ve been waiting for. So now I highly suggest we put a permanent end to these guys.”

  “I’m right there with you,” Brody stated. “I’m beyond pissed that I got cut out of the loop as it is.”

  Terk laughed. “You’ve hardly been cut out of the loop, so don’t exaggerate.”

  Brody grinned at his friend. “Says you. I didn’t get a chance to do anything with all those other assholes you guys were fighting. You know I would have been right in there, helping myself to some of that.”

  “And maybe gotten yourself in more trouble,” Terk reminded him. “Yet now you appear to have a guardian angel, who steps in whenever you need it.”

  “Yeah, and how the hell did that ever happen? To both me and Rick apparently,” he murmured.

  “I know, and that’s something else that makes all of us sit up and wonder.” Terk hesitated.

  Brody picked up on that, felt he had earned the right to know the truth, uncensored. “What?”

  Terk nodded, obviously deciding to explain further here. “Damon said that Tasha’s skills are developing too, and, with both of them in a relationship and working all the time with each other, I’m not surprised.”

  “She already was a hell of an admin for us. And we still need her with us, but the fact that she’s picking up and doing more and learning more about the energy work is also good for her—and us—as well.”

  As they got back into the truck, Brody watched as Charles pulled up alongside them, walked over, talked to them.

  “I got the gist of what went on,” Charles noted, “but not all of it. So, do you mind filling me in?”

  “I have a recording if you want,” Brody offered. Terk looked at Brody in surprise, and he shrugged. “I was recording it as it was happening.” He didn’t need to clarify, but he still did. “I wasn’t sure what your game plan was, Terk, so I just waited, as you had asked me to stay out of it.”

  “I would very much like a copy of that,” Charles stated. “It would help me to deal with these people effectively.”

  “Good luck with that,” Brody said. “First, you’ll have to wake them up.”

  Charles looked at them in alarm. “Did you hurt them?”

  “No, not at all,” Brody confirmed, “but they might not remember everything when they do wake up.”

  “Why?” Charles asked.

  “It is a common side effect of an energy knockout.”

  Charles winced. “I can’t have you hurting them. However, I get that, in this case, it was self-defense. And believe me. I’ll be utilizing that to the best of my ability. People in this agency are against having you involved in any way. So, it would be great if you could avoid hurting them.”

  “Which is why I didn’t,” Brody stated. “I just knocked them out and kept them down.”

  “Good,” Charles replied. “Much appreciated.”

  As Charles headed to pick up his three men, Brody pulled up his phone to send the recorded files to Charles. “Hope he can do something about these guys. Assholes like that really don’t need to be on MI6’s staff.” Brody sounded off, worn out and haggard.

  “Not only do they not need to be on staff, it would be better for us if they were nowhere near us,” Terk added, also exhausted. “It just becomes a huge headache for us. When there are fighting factions within the same department, shit always hits the fan.”

  “It isn’t there always, though,” Brody noted.

  “No, hopefully not always,” Terk agreed. “That’s one of the reasons why we have to do what we’re doing. We need to ensure that we don’t have tunnel vision about our government putting this on us. We have other potential suspects.”

  “Have you mentioned that to Charles at all?”

  “Yes, and he’s looking into it on the side,” Terk said. “It’s just that trying to get answers isn’t exactly the easiest thing. These assholes after us have been hiring local guns, then covering their tracks, and nobody’s really left to talk to.”

  Terk started the truck. “Let’s go home. You can work on that whole relationship thing with Clary.” A hint of laughter filled his voice, as Terk turned the vehicle back in the direction of home.

  Chapter 8

  When Brody walked in, Clary watched him carefully, looking to see if he was in any way affected. She knew her sister, Cara, was doing the same thing. But he looked good, given that the last energy draw was substantial. He not only looked comparatively healthy but vibrant. Although to the trained medical eye, he was still recovering.

  There was a sense of confidence, almost cockiness back in his step though. He’d been able to do something effectively, and that had made a huge difference in his demeanor.

  She was loving that.

  Nothing like seeing somebody come back to life and helping out in their own healing process. He wouldn’t necessarily be thrilled with how she saw it, but he was doing a lot better.

  Sometime soon he may not need her anymore.

  She acknowledged that there would be a change in the near future, and that thought … made her heart pang slightly. She was prepared to ignore it.

  For now.

  She was here for a job, not necessarily to stay. Yet just something about him strummed her heartstrings and pulled them in a big way. He was a special person, and, as she was starting to realize, a lot of people here depended on him. With the nightmare that they all found themselves in, they needed everyone banded together.

  As he walked toward her, the others fell silent, as if watching and waiting. He looked down at her with uncertainty. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome,” she replied calmly. “Glad you’re alive and well.”

  “Are you saying there would be a chance I shouldn’t be?” he asked.

  “With the amount of energy drawn, I was a bit worried and unsure. If I didn’t shut you down at the right time,” she explained, “there’s always a chance that somebody could pop a bullet in you, and I wouldn’t have a lifeline to keep you alive.”

  He stared at her, looking fascinated. “Could you really keep me alive in that situation?”

  “Not necessarily,” she admitted. “Every case is different, but I would hate to lose anybody now. I haven’t handed you off yet, so it’ll piss me off if I think I’ll lose somebody ahead of time.”

  He chuckled. “Well, I’m grateful. It was kind of dicey there for a while.”

  “Message received on that part,” she confirmed, “and apparently you’re okay now.” She was beyond curious.

  He nodded. “Bad guys taken down. Charles is handling it now—or as much as anybody in the agency is allowed to handle it.”

  “Just what the hell was that anyway?” Damon asked, walking to him. He sounded almost as pissed as Brody had been at the time.

  “Some midlevel MI6 operative and a couple of his henchmen were all of the opinion that Terk should be taken for a very short one-way walk for all his crimes against their country,” Brody relayed chillingly. “I don’t think they particularly gave a shit about the factual details,” Brody stated, obviously venting, and they let him. “It was pretty frustrating because they had their own agenda, and they were quite happy to take out Charles too.”

  “That will get them in trouble more than anything,” Terk noted. “Charles wields a ton of power, and, although he says he’s retired, I’m not sure I believe it.”

  “I’m not sure either.” Brody looked from one to the other. “Maybe he was, and maybe he’s been brought back into service or something. I don’t know, but, when it came down to it today, Charles was there to handle these three loose cannons.”

  “He has also gone to bat and vouched for us previously, several times,” Terk added. “I would hate for anything to happen to him.” They were all of the same mind. At that, Terk’s phone rang. He smiled. “It’s my brother. I better go take this.” And he turned and walked away.

  The others looked at Brody.

  “Are you doing okay?” Damon asked.

  “I’m doing great,” Brody replied, with a smile. “It was really nice to have my brain intact and apparently functioning at a level I hadn’t really been expected to function at for a long time.” He looked happy and content. “I mean, it felt good. I don’t know quite what’s awaiting me, but I’m happy to report that I did okay out there.”

  Damon slapped him on the shoulder. “Good. We’ll get some grub, once we get all this stuff put away, and maybe we can talk more then.”

  *

  Brody knew that Damon was curious to know more, but he probably figured it best to let it go for now. “I’d like that,” Brody agreed. “I need to start pulling my weight for the team again.”

  “Anytime you’re ready,” Wade and Damon replied in unison, and it surprised Brody. “We’ve just been waiting for you, buddy.” Wade patted him on the back.

  They both turned and headed out, presumably to help unload all the groceries that had come back with them. But it was enough for Brody to realize that Terk had been correct. Brody’d been the one who was sitting out, when he could have been part of it.

  The realization made him sad because, for some reason, he’d felt isolated when he woke up alone. Almost like an abandonment. Maybe that had been his doing. At least now he was back and feeling solid again.

  He looked over to see Clary studying him. “What?” he asked, frowning at her. “You always look at me like I’m a unicorn.”

  “Surprise.” She nodded. “That’s because you are. You have to understand that my sister and I, … we read energy—and have done so for a long time. But we haven’t had much exposure to others who can wield energy the way you guys do. So, when you put out the call for more energy, you surprised me. I didn’t have a problem giving it to you,” she continued, “but it was fascinating to watch you work it.”

  He nodded. “I wasn’t even thinking when I put out the call for energy. It was just instinctive to ask for help, and it was there, just like that. I owe you a huge thanks for that.”

  “Maybe,” Clary replied, “but it’s the kind of work you do. So I guess that type of request is to be expected.”

  He smiled. “Yes, and no. There’ll never be a point in time when there isn’t potential for things to go wrong.”

  She laughed. “No, you’ve got that right. But, for now, your thanks are accepted.”

  “Wow.” He rubbed his stomach. “I need to get some food now.”

  “You do in a big way,” she agreed, “and so do I.”

  He looked at her and frowned. “You mean, because of the work I did?”

  “Yes, and I overexerted myself as well.”

  “I funneled away a ton of energy when I knocked those guys out.”

  “Yeah, well, that was my energy. Yours was already long gone when I intervened.”

  He burst out laughing. “In that case, come on. Let’s head to the kitchen and get something to eat. You never know when I’ll have to knock out the next guy.”

  *

  As she thought about it, she realized it was a lot different working with Brody than her usual patients.

  It’s not that it was bad; it was just different. She and Brody were both from different worlds, and everything about them was different. Looking around her, she realized that they were not like most people. Most people didn’t acclimate or live in their own restricted space very well, but these people around her did.

  Clary wasn’t sure what caused one to live below their potential. In essence, it had more to do with the mind giving up on whatever was happening around them. People tended to be oblivious to the energy, and very few recognized it. It was hard to get somebody to believe in the miracles. It was easy to give up when people couldn’t think beyond the ordinary and had no will to survive a scenario in their own minds.

  They knew nothing of what could be.

  But, in Brody’s case, he was an active life force, struggling to do more, to be more. He held on to life and savored it in his own way. It was fascinating and strange to get her mind wrapped around it because he was so all over the place and so alive that she felt like she was falling behind.

  When you know someone to be fragile, and yet they surprise you with the strength they show, it was remarkable. It was a very strange position for her to be in. Normally she was the one in control, calmly directing energy to heal her patients.

  In his case, he was jumping forward and taking the control away from her. And he wanted to do so much more already. From the moment he woke up from his coma, he considered himself ready to take on more than she had ever imagined.

  She would have to up her game, do more.

  She realized it now, and it was difficult for her to admit to herself. This was a strange place she was in. But it was also fascinating, and, just like her sister, Clary found herself wanting more. They always talked about it, and they knew what they could do was not enough. They wanted to grow, to learn more, and to do more.

  Now that Clary had finally found a group of people who she could try to match pace with, she had become uncertain of herself. There was likely to be no end to the growth for both Cara and Clary, if they stayed here, as they had the chance to expand their abilities beyond their wildest dreams, all because they were among other people who had energy abilities.

  A group of like-minded people who could wield energy would accelerate each other’s growth when working together. Much faster than any others left alone. Some of them could be irritating and headstrong—Brody in particular—and she knew the risks and the trouble she would have in controlling him.

  He was a force to be reckoned with, and, if the attacks on the team kept continuing, she wasn’t sure how that would go down with him—or with anybody else in the group.

  Her first responsibility was to keep Brody alive, but, as he said, there would be times where the conflicting goals could hinder her work. He didn’t want her shutting him down when he knew he had to do something, and she couldn’t, with good conscience, let him be. Before all this, her patients knew nothing of the abilities and the energy she was sustaining them with, but Brody knew. He understood, and he was fighting for control.

  There had to be a level of compromise with Brody that she hadn’t expected, and that was both incredibly tantalizing and appealing. She understood the draw for her sister, but, more than that, Clary had also felt the emotions that surged through her with her connection to Brody.