"Or have any b.l.o.o.d.y clue what had happened to Anka or where she is now?" Caden challenged.

He cursed. "Mathias knows I've never backed others with his views, so he's leery of my support. Trust will take time to build. I'm making progress. Be patient." Be patient . . . while the Doomsday Brethren were left to wonder whether Shock was being honest or using these words as a ploy so he could betray them. A quick glance around proved warriors' att.i.tudes were anywhere from considering to accusatory.

"Let's pretend for a moment that any of us believe you," Bram said. "The first thing I would say is-"

"Pretend you believe? p.i.s.s off. The lot of you!" He pinned Bram with a narrow-eyed glare. "In case you've forgotten, you asked me to join the Doomsday Brethren. I don't need your distrust." Shock charged toward the door. Marrok blocked it.

"Out of my way, human."

Marrok leveled him with a stare that would make a normal man shiver. "I will let you leave when Bram tells me you can pa.s.s. Not before."

"I can zap the life out of you," he sneered.

Marrok drew his broadsword. "Not before I sever your head from your body."

"Gentlemen," Bram placated. "Enough. As you always say, Marrok, we cannot defeat Mathias if we are too busy fighting one another. Because I have no better option and you know it, we will continue with your 'plan,' Shock. For now. I want regular reports, and they'd best be useful. Provide me ideas about the means necessary to defeat Mathias, information like the size of his army and any vulnerabilities. And do it quickly. If you do, we'll get on just fine. Betray me, and I will find you, then kill you slowly and without mercy."

Caden smiled. "With that I'll be happy to help."

Monday morning arrived, as did Caden at nine sharp, sticking his head inside Sydney's office. He looked generally out of sorts and agitated. Pity for him. If Caden liked doormats, they weren't going to get on very well.

Since he couldn't read her lascivious thoughts or know what she'd written in her "magical" diary, his visit must be about the magickind story again. She sighed.

Even so, one glance at him was like a punch to her stomach. He looked incredible in charcoal slacks, a crisp white collar, and a burgundy sweater that accentuated his outdoorsman's coloring and deep-blue eyes. She must stop mooning like an adolescent. The man was trying to steal from her, no matter how gorgeous he looked. Wanting someone who sought to use her was both stupid and self-destructive.

She sent him a bland expression, then looked back to her computer screen. "What is it MacTavish?

Angry that I lost you at the pub?"

He shook his head. "No. I want to talk to you. I have since Sat.u.r.day, but prefer not to talk in the office."

"Well, I've work to do, so if you've something to say, speak up now. And this best be good."

"I came to see you last night." His stare was hot, direct. It nearly melted her.

The thought of Caden in her flat again, as she'd written in the diary, made her shiver with longing. Stupid.

She'd best keep her head with this one-or she'd find herself out of a story.

"Did you? I fell asleep early. But after feeding me a load of s.h.i.t about having inappropriate feelings for me, I'm shocked that you dared to knock on my door again."

"That wasn't a load of s.h.i.t."

"So you stopped by to . . . what? Proposition me after you'd already refused s.e.x?"

"No. To apologize for trying to force you to take me to your contact. If I want your trust as a partner, that wasn't the way to earn it."

The sincerity in his words pried her gaze away from her e-mails and back to Caden. Granted, this could be another ruse to earn her trust, but he looked earnest.

"All right, then. Tell me, why are you pursuing this story so hard?"

"I've no wish to steal it. I know you think I do. I swear, I'm not working for a rival or hoping to plaster it across the Internet with my byline."

She propped her chin on her hand. "Really? Then why is your curiosity insatiable?" He shrugged. "I'm not alone. According to our last staff meeting, so is your readers'."

"True, but your interest seems a bit more intense." He sighed, looking reluctant. "I'm worried. Mathias sounds powerful. If you print this story, will he or his army be able to track your source down? How do you know she isn't critical to Mathias's success and that he won't come after her again if you even hint at this woman's location? Who or what will keep her safe? Is she going with Aquarius on holiday or staying at Aquarius's place? Will she be safe? If he can't find her, what about you? Won't he pursue you to lead him to her?"

"I can't imagine that anyone magical reads-" Sydney stopped and scanned her memory. "Aquarius's place? I never said that."

Instantly, Caden stiffened. "You did. The other day." Sydney thought again. "No. I had something like that written down, though. On the notes in my handbag.

You snooped." Oh, the lying snake! "You came to my flat Sat.u.r.day, not because you're interested in me, but because you were prying through my notes. See, you merely want to talk to my source so you can scoop me."

"That's not true."

"You turned down a blatant invitation for s.e.x and repeated things I wrote only in my notes. You apologized to get back in my good graces. It's clear what you're after." Instead of guilt, desire ripped across his expression. He raked his hands through his hair, practically oozing frustration. Sydney had never seen him so agitated.

"You're wrong." Through clenched teeth, he vowed, "If I had been less of a gentleman, I would have very gladly taken you up on your offer, f.u.c.ked you like mad, and shown you not just that I want you, but precisely how."

That low-voiced growl, the way his stare seemed to burn the clothes from her body . . . The man made her a walking hormone. Her knickers suddenly went damp, and the way he stared at her, Sydney wouldn't be surprised if he knew it. She fought to shake off the insane need that scalded her blood, but no such luck. Too bad. She wasn't about to let him use her desire against her.

"I challenged you to a game of chicken, and you flinched. Now I know what you're really about, you poacher. I won't fall for your manufactured l.u.s.t and let you steal my story." Caden stormed around her desk and towered over her. His gorgeous body put off heat like an oven, and a scent that made her melt into a puddle of l.u.s.t. His mouth hovered bare inches above her own, and against her better judgment, Sydney trembled.

"Manufactured?" he growled. "What I feel is very real. If I was on top of you, plunged deep, while you were screaming my name, you'd know better."

Her insides trembled, and she resisted the urge to fan herself. "Prove it." Caden cursed, something low and ugly. "I can't. I want to. G.o.d, but it's beyond complicated." Ah, the excuses. "I'm a smart girl. I think I can keep up."

Caden swallowed. How much of the truth did he dare tell? Nothing about his quest for Anka, clearly, but the rest. . . . Honesty would be best-or Sydney would see right through him.

"Desire roils in my gut for you. I've never known anything like it. Sometimes, it's all I can do to stay away." His voice shook. He was hard as steel, but she wasn't looking there. Instead, Caden realized he'd grabbed the arms of her chair, and his face hovered just above hers. She blinked. Her rosy lips parted. He gripped the plastic armrests until he thought they'd break. d.a.m.n it, the urge to kiss her nearly overpowered him.

When had he ever bared such personal feelings to a woman? The question rattled him because he knew the answer was never.

Sydney rolled her eyes. "C'mon, MacTavish. I handed you s.e.x on a silver platter-twice-and you refused."

It had been one of the most difficult things he'd ever done.

Being this close to Sydney was revving up his libido. If he didn't get some distance between them, he'd take her up on her offer here and now. G.o.d help her if he ever unleashed all this want on her.

He took a deep breath and a step back. "Not from lack of desire, but a sense of responsibility. We work together. My life now, with Lucan's illness, is beyond complex. Once he recovers, I'll be returning to Texas, so beginning anything with you-that would only be temporary and unfair." She frowned. "You'd hardly be my first fling. Or my last. I didn't ask for commitment." Caden ground his jaw as he imagined another man's hands on her. The more time he spent with her, the more homicidal that thought made him feel. "If I touched you, I would want more. Need it. That, I know."

She sucked in a shocked breath. "What does this have to do with your behavior Sat.u.r.day? It's not as if you tried to follow me to my contact because you want to s.h.a.g me." He looked down at his boots and weighed his answer. Again, he stuck as close to the truth as he dared.

"No. I followed you because I worry about you."

"Me? Not the contact?"

G.o.d, this woman was blazingly tenacious and determined to pry every bit of truth out of him she could. "I don't want to see anyone hurt, but I'm most concerned about you."

"Because I'm crossing town or talking to a woman who fears her own shadow?" That ever-logical side that drew him to her also proved to make her a stubborn pain in his a.r.s.e. "Not just a woman, a witch. You don't know what she's capable of or if Mathias is still after her. Or could pursue you, simply for writing this story."

"Perhaps. But I won't let that stand in the way of the truth."

"I know," he said honestly. If he knew one thing about Sydney, it was that her dedication was unquestionable. "Which is exactly why I didn't say it sooner. I want to protect you. This may offend your feminist sensibilities, but it's the soldier in me." Sydney sent him a skeptical glare, but it wasn't untrue. While protecting her hadn't been Caden's primary motive, it had been on his mind.

She snorted. "I admit, you're oozing macho."

"I didn't want to tell you because I knew you'd reject the need for a bodyguard."

"Indeed. Let's say I believe that you're merely concerned about me because you have feelings for me that you think would be unfair to act on. What next?" "Save my sanity, please. Let me protect you-at least a bit. Tell me what's happening with the magical war story, so I can be prepared."

She hesitated, sent him a long measuring glance. "All right." Caden wasn't sure she truly believed him, but at least she was talking. He let out a huge sigh of relief.

Yes, he wanted to find Anka, right Lucan's life, return to Dallas. But he did feel the urge to protect Sydney. He would miss her-worry about her-once he'd gone.

"Did your source give you more information?" he asked, sitting in the office's guest chair once more.

"A bit."

"Enough for another article?"

"Not certain yet."

She was holding back . . . and he didn't blame her. He'd handled things badly before. Today hadn't been loads better, but a least she no longer looked hostile. "Will you share what you know? Please." For a long moment, Sydney did nothing but stare, as if trying to read his thoughts. Finally, she shrugged.

"Since you're my photographer and a.s.signed partner, I'm supposed to work with you. And you'll read the details when they're printed.

"According to my source, the magical war is escalating. Mathias rose from an exile that was supposed to be like death and last forever. Apparently, no one knows how he did it, but everyone knows he wants to overthrow a terrible cla.s.s system that oppresses the poor. His goal is to help them rise up." Caden had never heard such a load of tripe. "Or so he says."

"Indeed. But it makes for a juicy story. Holly wants me to play the angle that since he's arisen like a savior, magickind will embrace him. The battle in the tunnel a few weeks ago was one of many to throw off the oppressors, and stay tuned for more details." He couldn't let her print any of that, though he couldn't tell her why without revealing too much. Besides, Sydney was an independent creature. The minute he told her to do one thing, she'd do the opposite.

"So you're glorifying the man who raped this poor woman?" he asked.

She paused, then wrinkled her nose. "That's been my objection, but Holly likes the angle that this witch was an enemy of his utopia and he dealt harshly with her. I couldn't see another slant."

"Mathias is no hero. You know b.o.l.l.o.c.ks about combat."

"Admittedly."

"The psychological game is more than half the battle. The aggressor needs the ma.s.ses on his side, and if he's in the wrong, he must lie. What if Mathias is bamboozling these magical people? What if he's claiming to be their savior, but merely wants power for his own gain? What if he's convinced the poor that he can lift them up, but it's a huge ruse?" He clenched his fists, and his shoulders tensed, as if he was barely restraining himself from pounding on the desk. "And what if he raped that poor woman because she belonged to someone fighting on the right side, and Mathias knew he could crush that man by brutalizing his woman?"

Sydney's jaw dropped, then she scrambled for a notepad. "You're b.l.o.o.d.y good at this. Much more interesting than Holly's suggestion."

"If I talked to your source, in addition to protecting you, perhaps we could craft a better story together."

"Can't." Sydney didn't miss a beat, just continued jotting down notes. "I've told you, the poor witch is terrified. A man, especially one like you, would send her scurrying to dig her own grave. She'd never talk again."

"Tell me about her. Maybe I can find some way to ease her fears," he went on. "You could a.s.sure her that I would never harm her. She trusts you."

"Very little. She jumps at a shadow. No offense, but you wear that soldier mien a bit too well. You could never soothe her."

"Perhaps I should talk to her on the phone first, allay her worries, and pave the way for a face-to-face meeting. For your safety, I'd rather you not meet with her again unless I'm there." Pausing, Sydney looked up from her notes. "She doesn't want her picture taken." Caden couldn't tell if she believed him or would delay meeting with her source without him. And he could neither lose his only possible lead to Anka nor allow Sydney to risk herself.

"So I won't take it."

Sydney shrugged. "Convincing her will be a challenge. Besides, she's gone for a bit."

"With Aquarius on holiday? Where?"

"I don't know. Their plans weren't set. Said something about Paris, perhaps." d.a.m.n! Aquarius and Anka, if she was indeed Sydney's source, could be anywhere.

"I have a bad feeling about this story," he murmured. "I beg you to hold off unless I can be certain you're safe."

"I think you're worried more than necessary. It's . . . sweet of you, but Holly wants another story now.

I'm a big girl and I can take care of myself."

Tamping down his frustration, he reached for logic. He had to get through to this woman, stop this story.

"Where is the picture your previous photographer took of the battle aftermath? Can I have a look?" Sydney frowned, then rifled through one of the folders on her desk. When she found the photo, she slid it across the desk to him. "Here."

He slid it back in front of her. "How many dead bodies do you see?" She glanced at the picture, then away. "It's too dark and grainy to tell." "More than a few?" he challenged.

She hesitated, as if sensing his point before he made it and already looking for a way to refute it. "Yes."

"Dozens, in fact. Wouldn't you say?"

"Perhaps." She shrugged.

"No. Obviously. These were men. Judging from their uniforms, many were soldiers, which means they were trained in combat. And they are dead in droves." He paused, letting the words sink in. "If Mathias wanted this story hushed, do you think he'd have any compunction about killing you?" Sydney didn't answer, but Caden knew by the look on her face that she understood his point.

"By all accounts, there was blood everywhere. Severed heads and limbs, multiple gunshots, and a lot of death. What do you know about avoiding those?"

Looking about, she fiddled with a pen, tapped her toes. She didn't like the truth.

"Sydney?"

"All right. Nothing. But you can't fight off magic."

"I know how to use a gun. Before you do anything for this story, especially visit the madman's victim, take me with you. That's all I ask."

"I'll . . . think about it."