Sean turned his head and saw that both men and Colleen were watching him and obviously waiting for his answer. He opened his mouth to reply when suddenly his mind had filled with Rayne's voice screaming his name. Shaking his head, he looked around, but she hadn't been anywhere that he could see. That proved that he had not physically heard her voice, but rather it had a psychic sound reverberating in his brain. Hurriedly, he jumped to his feet and ran down the steps, looking in the direction of her place. Nowhere did he see Rayne, which was proof that it was not his ears that heard her voice.

Turning back toward the porch, the sudden need to see her was overwhelming, literally swamping all of his senses. He couldn't stay here. The compulsion to see her was too great. Pausing to shout at Bob, he turned abruptly.

"I trust your decision, Bob. I'll be back as soon as I can." Two seconds later he was running towards his truck.

The trip to Rayne's, that had taken seven minutes yesterday, had only taken him four today. Luckily the sheriff and his deputies hadn't been around as he careened down the gravel lane to her property. He slammed on the brakes as he saw the bright, new-looking skimmer. This was the first one he'd seen since he'd left New Frisco. Seeing one at her house didn't do a single thing to allay his concerns.

Running up the porch steps, he didn't know what he expected to find. He only knew that his gut feeling demanded he rush over. Unbidden had come the thought that he was her knight rushing to her rescue, but he pushed it away quickly. Throwing open her front screen door, the scene inside her living room wasn't what he'd expected, but then he hadn't really stopped to consider anything before charging over to her house.

Sean took a step toward Rayne, trying to take in the scene before him, and just what the h.e.l.l was going on here!

"Grrrr!"

"Wroof! Wrooof!"

"Mmrrreeooowwww!"

The room was suddenly full of animals, the likes of which he'd never seen in his life. Two of them looked like dogs, but they were bigger than his large working dogs. And from the sounds they were making, they were in protective mode. Sean didn't move as he looked at the four-foot tall dogs. He wasn't sure that he liked the idea of such powerful animals around Rayne. She might not be able to fend them off if they decided to attack her.

"Are you all right, Rayne?"

Rayne smiled up at him. "I'm okay, but I probably need a Band-Aid on my foot."

The blond man moved forward and Sean turned to look at him. Something about the man's expensive clothing and perfect haircut set his teeth on edge. He didn't know this guy, but already he didn't like him.

"It's my fault, I'm afraid. Miss Waters was getting us something to drink and didn't hear me in here looking at her photographs. I didn't mean to startle you, Miss Waters." He pulled a pristine white handkerchief from his pocket and started forward to offer it to Rayne. After just two steps he stopped as the dogs began growling again.

"It's all right. Sean, what brought you over here?"

Sean ignored Rayne for a moment, glaring at the other man. "Who the h.e.l.l are you and what are you doing here?"

"My name is Anton DeVeau. I just stopped by to discuss something with Miss Waters. I'm sorry for having caused you such distress. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"We're fine. Maybe you should come back some other time, though."

"Thank you for the offer-"

Sean and Rayne spoke at the same time, but her voice faded away first. Sean was glad when the stranger excused himself and left quickly. Sean followed him to the door, waiting until the sleek skimmer had traveled cleanly over the gravel, barely disturbing the dust. Something about the blond man set his psychic senses on alert. Mentally he noted to call into the Agency's base in New Frisco. Turning, he found that Rayne had wrapped the white handkerchief around her foot. The dogs were concentrating on eating the cookies and lapping up the tea.

"I didn't know you had...dogs?"

Rayne smiled. "I like pets. And they usually stay outside until I call them in. I didn't do that because you...well, they like to sleep with me. I didn't want to push the Alpha male issue. If you'll pick up the gla.s.s, then I'll get up with your help. Oh, thank you for watering for me this morning."

Sean crossed the room and squatted down slowly, still feeling leery of the dogs. Luckily the gla.s.s hadn't shattered and was only in just a few big pieces. He placed them on the silver tray. Shifting, he set the tray to the side.

"Grrrmmmmeeeeooooooaaaaaarrrrrrrrr."

Sean spun back at the odd sound, but the dogs were now seated complacently. He looked at Rayne. "What is that?"

"Another pet," she said, smiling. "I have several. Could you help me up? I think my foot will be fine if I just put some gauze on it."

Sean followed her into the bathroom, watching for a moment before he spoke. "Why don't you take a quick shower and then I'll run you into the hospital? We can wrap a towel around it."

Rayne looked back at Sean, over her shoulder. "Are you telling me indirectly that I stink?"

"Good G.o.d! Of course not, honey. I'm worried about your foot. It's obvious you've been out in the dirt without your shoes on, and now you've cut your foot. If nothing else we should go in and update your Teta.n.u.s booster."

"Okay, but please go to the kitchen and bring me one of those towels. I don't want to mess up one of the bathroom towels."

Sean was back in about four minutes, pausing to wipe up the remaining tea and set the gla.s.s fragments and tea tray back on the counter. The dogs merely watched him, but as he entered the kitchen, he thought he saw the tail of another animal disappearing around a corner. Somehow he knew the story about her pets would be an interesting one. Everything about Rayne was proving to be out of the ordinary and quite intriguing.

In the bathroom, he sat on the closed toilet, watching her dim reflection through the full-length shower door. He watched her washing her hair, rinsing it, and then as he saw her picking the bottle up again, he spoke.

"Come on, Rayne. You don't need to wash it twice, or condition your hair. I feel we have a more pressing need."

She turned suddenly and leaned her face close to the door. Then she stuck her tongue out, before returning to her shower. Still, she merely finished washing her body, which turned out to be a rather erotic show as well. As the door opened, her hand came out and grabbed for a towel. She held it in front of her, wrapping it around her body, but then had to slide it around to tuck the ends for security.

Sean grinned. "Sit down and let me wrap this towel around your foot before we have blood everywhere. Stay put." He added a moment later, "I'll go grab something for you to wear."

Chapter Eight.

Rayne was sitting on her front porch with her foot elevated. She had refused to move in with him. Colleen didn't need more stress in her life right now. Her stubbornness had surprised Sean, but he had let it drop. What he wouldn't listen to was her tackling the watering.

"Just wait until I get back. Surely you can do that."

"I'm missing one whole watering, though."

Sean turned his eyes from the road toward Rayne for a second. She could feel his emotions even though she was looking out the window of the truck cab. Lifting the soft drink in the large cup, she sipped it slowly. Sean had bought them lunch for the ride back home. That was when he had told her he wanted to stay, but he had to hurry home and change clothes. Tonight was a meeting of local business owners, and of all nights, this one included dinner and he'd agreed to give a short talk. He would have sent Bob, but Colleen had reminded him three times yesterday and twice this morning after his return that they had Lamaze cla.s.s tonight. It was the longer one, with the video and tour.

"All right," Rayne told him quietly a few moments later. "I'll wait for you."

"Promise?"

Rayne turned to look at him, surprised that he seemed to know her that well. "Yes, I promise."

Sean grinned at her. "No toes, fingers, legs and eyes crossed, right?"

She couldn't resist him, even though she hadn't gotten her way.

It was nine o'clock now, which was the time she liked to start filling the buckets. She couldn't remember how many times she wished she'd spent the extra money she'd gotten on an irrigation system, even if hadn't covered the whole area. And it hadn't become a problem until she'd received the warning to be wary of people poking around. The PSI agents had gotten a tip a couple of months ago. That was when she had had to resort to conventional watering methods. No more "rain dancing" until the commotion settled down once again.

As a very young child, she had discovered her powers over water. She could move it, as in making waves in her bathtub while nothing moved. When she was five, she made waves appear suddenly in a completely placid lake when there wasn't a breath of wind. At age eight she got to see the ocean for the first time, and the last as far as her grandmother was concerned. It was a very wet group that piled back into the old car for the trip home.

It was only after they had to leave their grandmother did Rayne begin studying other things, among them casting spells and Native American lore regarding the making of rain. At age thirteen, she brought a light sprinkle, and it only covered a really small area. But at eighteen, there was a spectacular thunderstorm, with lightning galore. She soon discovered the big storms were easy; it was getting the rain to fall in a small isolated area that was hard. Only after listening to a friend from near her grandparents' farm complaining about the rainstorm that seemed to be traveling across the whole breadth of the country did she realize that while it might be fun, her powers definitely had consequences.

Thus it was when the drought started a few months earlier, Rayne had thrown caution to the wind, and started "making rain." When she was in town one day, she heard people complaining about how the weather station couldn't explain some unusual cloud patterns. Combined with the warning about the PSI agents, Rayne stopped her nightly dancing in her field. With immeasurable displeasure, she began the backbreaking work of hand watering.

"Do rain...do rain...do rain!"

Rayne turned her head to look at the brilliantly colored parrot perched on the bar she made for him so he had a good view on the porch. "Hush, Homer." Looking at the sky, she pleaded for either help with the bird or patience for her in dealing with the recalcitrant parrot. "Why is that the only thing he wants to say anymore?" A moment later she turned to the parrot. For a second she questioned in her mind whether or not the d.a.m.ned bird was grinning at her. "If you get me in trouble, Homer, I won't be the only one who gets screwed!"

Homer merely shifted his claws on the perch, and then bent his head to scratch with his beak. "Do rain...do rain."

Rayne shook her head, leaning it back on the cushion of the chair. "Shut up, Homer. I'm not letting a d.a.m.ned parrot talk me into doing anything!"

"Grrrrrmmmeeeeeeooooofff."

A second later she felt the brush of the soft fur against her leg. The swish of a tail batted back and forth, barely missing her drink resting on the table. "Hey, Mohan! You are going to knock something over with that tail of yours."

"Cccchhhhhuuuuffff...ccchhuuuffff."

Rayne looked down at the animal anxious for her attention all of a sudden. For a moment she closed her eyes and offered up a prayer that Mohan had decided to stay away from the commotion that morning. Most people didn't react too well with a one hundred and fifteen pound Amur tiger. Well, technically Mohan wasn't pure tiger anymore. Shortly after she had settled here, she had gone to the nearest animal shelter, hoping to bring home some sweet pets to love. What she had found were the two puppies that now resembled small horses, an obnoxious parrot and an animal that wasn't identifiable-by sight anyway.

Looking into the small, white-and-black-striped cat's history, she had discovered that nearby had been a government facility before the war. Rumors had gone around about testing, using animals and so on. But at the end of the war, it was shut down, except for a minimal maintenance crew. After the animals all died, it was closed permanently. Mohan was now full-size and was probably the result of crossbreeding a cat and a Siberian tiger.

Rayne was always careful around her, because no matter how house-trained an animal might be, a person couldn't erase millions of years of instinctive behaviors. She'd never seen Mohan show the slightest interest in hunting anything. If something smaller came into her vicinity, she was usually the more timid at the unexpected meeting. And luckily, all of her menagerie seemed to be amicable. The only trouble was Homer, who up until he'd adopted his newest phrase, had been particularly fond of phrases he'd learned at his previous owner's place of business, a strip club.

"Ccchhhuuuffff!"

Rayne rubbed Mohan's head as she rested it on her leg. She'd gotten used to the unusual sound, which she had learned was typical of tigers when greeting their caretakers. Whenever she looked into those sad, pale blue eyes though, she couldn't help but wonder at what terrible things they must have done to some of the animals at the research center.

Glancing back into the house through the window, she saw that it was almost ten. Sean had thought he'd be back here around nine thirty at the latest. She knew he would be exhausted by the time he did get here, and she hated the thought of him having to water before he could sleep. She was tired, so she was d.a.m.ned sure that he had to be exhausted. Since he'd gotten up earlier, he'd had even less sleep last night.

As she scratched behind the big cat's ears, she mused out loud, "If it did rain, it would have to be for at least thirty minutes to do any good. A downpour would only run off with the dry ground. Where as a nice, slow and gentle rain would have enough time to soak in and not cause any flash floods lower in the deeper sections of the valley."

Rayne stood slowly, pushing the big cat away. It wouldn't be easy to do, but if she were careful with her foot, and worked quickly, she could be done before Sean got there. He probably wouldn't believe her if she said she'd done the watering, but perhaps she could say that Billy had shown up. That way Sean could get the rest he needed, if he chose to do it here. One part of her brain told her that it was the fact that he had spent the last two nights here that was the real cause of their lack of sleep. Still, Rayne sensed that if he wasn't here she would spend the night tossing and turning.

"Quite the conundrum," she murmured as she walked unsteadily down the steps. To concentrate the rainfall, she'd have to get into the middle of the field. Usually she didn't care if the rain fell outside the growing field, but if the roof was soaked, or the gra.s.s wet, Sean would definitely be suspicious.

Progress was slow as Rayne walked, or rather hobbled into the field. To the man watching her from a well hidden spot a few hundred yards away, it was obvious the cut she'd sustained that morning must have been deeper than he had originally thought. Anton DeVeau lowered the specially equipped night-vision binoculars for a moment. There had been a moment this morning, looking at the photographs on the woman's living room wall, that he had gotten a distinct flash that told him Rayne was the psychic he'd been searching for this last year.

Anton was a direct descendant of the overlord Marcel DeVeau. Marcel had been a close friend of Tyre Leyton. Approximately fifteen months earlier, Anton had gone to Paris to close up his grandmother's home following her death. He had been astonished to find a personal diary that, even though it was not signed anywhere, had become obvious to Anton as he read through the old pages that the author was his grandfather. He was surprised to learn that his grandfather had been a.s.signed a special task, which unfortunately was interrupted by the rebellion and the subsequent overthrow of the psychic regime.

The diary had revealed the story of a woman who had caught Tyre's attention in the year 2065. Because of a.s.sociation with Tyre, whether she was a natural psychic or not was never questioned. As time went on, Marcel wrote in the diary that the woman became known as Tyrea, adopting the name of her master when she became his recognized concubine. By this time, Tyre had been in power for seventeen years. A law had been pa.s.sed which prohibited two psychics of equal power mating, due to the circ.u.mstances that they might then procreate. It was unknown if that child would have greater power than the parent, and Tyre's government didn't want to find out.

Four years later, 2069, Marcel noted that suddenly Tyrea had left without word to anyone. Anton read that his grandfather had been surprised by the depth of anger Tyre expressed at being deserted by the woman. Marcel wrote that he had long suspected that Tyre felt much more for the woman than one usually saw between a master and his concubine. He suspected his sire's anger hid an aching heart. Tyre searched for the woman for several years, but as the rebellious outbreaks grew in frequency and depth, his attention was pulled away from matters of the heart. Then in the year 2100, only nine months to be exact, Tyre had given Marcel a task. Marcel was to do everything in his power to find Tyrea.

In the diary, Marcel recorded his arguments with Tyre over what he considered a waste of his precious time when the rebels were almost knocking on the palace doors. That was when Tyre had revealed the truth to his friend, and swore him to secrecy. Tyrea had been pregnant when she disappeared years earlier. Tyre had learned that she had died shortly after giving birth, but a child had survived. Marcel argued that he could be of much more use here, but his ruler had been insistent, finally revealing the truth. Tyrea had been a natural psychic. He did not know what level, but he suspected it was high, considering the concern Tyre was now expressing.

Anton read between the lines that Tyre had feared a son had been born, who could possibly defeat him by being a much stronger psychic. Marcel had noted all of his findings as he began his search, but the end had come too soon. Marcel had been in Paris, briefly visiting his wife, when word of defeat reached them. The diary ended with Marcel writing that he had not succeeded in his final task for his sire, but hopefully he would die n.o.bly, thus honoring Tyre with his death.

Anton lifted the binoculars once again, focusing them on where he had last seen the beautiful woman. He had not been unaware of her beauty when he had finally met her. In the sunlight, she had been tanned, healthy looking and d.a.m.ned s.e.xy. His immediate reaction to the woman's beauty surprised him still. He had been so devoted to rebuilding a strong psychic presence in the world for so long, that he had ignored a personal life for himself. Something about Rayne was making him have all kinds of personal, erotic thoughts.

Like that thin cotton dress she'd had on that morning. He could tell that she'd been naked beneath it by the way the sunlight had shown through the lightweight material. Standing in her living room, he had entertained thoughts of taking her on the floor. Anton didn't regard himself as a Neanderthal, but he was fully aware of his own attractiveness to women. There had been no doubt that a woman, living in the middle of nowhere, would welcome the attentions of someone like himself into her lonely existence, even for just a few hours.

The arrival of the other man had taken him by surprise. His surveillance had been completed a month ago, but then he had been required at the Center to discuss what he had found. No one acted without discussing their actions with the New Psychic Council and obtaining approval. The presence of this man, Sean something, had surprised him. The brawny teenager he'd seen from time to time had not worried him in the least. The minute Sean had burst into the living room, Anton had felt the change. With all of his psychic focus on discovering Rayne's ident.i.ty, he had given no attention to the other man.

It unnerved him to think that the other man might have truly been a psychic, and in his temporary rapture with Rayne, he had missed the opportunity to psychically a.s.sess him. Telling himself to forget the past and concentrate on his a.s.signment, he focused the binoculars on the porch. Scanning the length of the porch, he didn't see her so he shifted his gaze toward the lawn in front of the house. Still not finding her, he wondered if she had decided to water the field after all. Starting at the front row, he began scanning the rows. He located her standing in the middle of the field.

"What the f.u.c.k?"

The binoculars revealed that the woman was twisting and turning, with her hands raised skyward. Granted, she wasn't moving smoothly, or evenly, but he guessed she was dancing. Why the h.e.l.l would she be dancing in the field at-he glanced at his watch-almost ten at night? Before he could formulate any further thoughts concerning Rayne, there was a loud clap of thunder overhead. Less than a second later, rain was pouring down on his head.

Cursing loudly, Anton fumbled to get the binoculars back to his eyes. Quickly he relocated Rayne. She was standing in the same spot, clapping her hands while the rain soaked her clothing. Her joy in the gentle rain drenching her, and her plants, was unmistakable. Logically, her happiness at having rain would make sense-after all, she was a farmer. Watching her, Anton lowered the night-vision binoculars to reveal her clinging clothes. Beneath the wet cotton dress, he easily saw the way her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were defined with taut nipples. Moving them down more, he lingered at her hips and thighs, enjoying how the material was caught between her legs as she moved back into the lane. From behind, her a.s.s was perfect and heart-shaped.

The appearance of bright lights shining up Rayne's gravel road blinded him and he dropped the binoculars. Quickly he moved back under cover so the lights couldn't highlight him watching Rayne. He considered waiting until the lights left again, but he didn't like getting wet, and sitting here with water filling his expensive shoes wasn't his idea of fun. It was an easy decision to head back toward the small town and visit the local bar. Maybe there he could find out what had changed since his last visit.

Chapter Nine.

Sean slammed the door of his truck. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. At dinner he'd had a gla.s.s of wine, and before he'd had a whiskey from the cash bar. Surely that wasn't enough liquor to make him hallucinate, was it? In college, he drank a h.e.l.l of a lot more at fraternity parties. Looking up at the sky, he verified that he was standing where he could see stars, and clear skies. Still, about thirty yards away, he could see that it was raining on Rayne's field. The same field that he had been thinking about speeding up a way to water it more quickly. When the field went fallow, he was going to have irrigation and watering installed.

n. And to be perfectly honest, he had always a.s.sumed it was an old lady's daydream. Then he saw Rayne walking towards him, out of the field.

His breath caught in his throat as he saw how beautiful she looked soaking wet. The rain obviously wasn't bothering her in the least. In fact, he could see that she was smiling. Something about her screamed erotic and sensual, but it seemed to be more than just the clinging dress to her body. These feelings were much deeper, more elemental than simple l.u.s.t. She was part of the rain, even part of the nature that surrounded them.

Sean knew this woman was getting under his skin. When he wasn't with her he was thinking about her. The most alarming thing was the way he was thinking and planning in his future, including her in his plans and dreams. He was a.s.suming she would be in his life, now, tomorrow and next year.

When he had decided to retire and settle down, marriage was not part of the picture. Women, plural, was what he had planned on, perhaps making up for the solitary life he'd led during his years working as an agent. Rayne was more than unexpected...she was a shock to his physical, emotional and psychological well-being. Yet every time he thought of her, he felt something inside him awaken and move through him. Perhaps he was imagining this as well, but when he was with Rayne it seemed as if his psychic power was enhanced, or purified in some way he couldn't explain. His mind, though, kept shying away from acknowledging what was happening.

"You're early. I didn't think you'd be here for another hour or so."

Rayne's words didn't make a lot of sense just then, so lost in his thoughts had he been until her voice disturbed him. "So much for resting your foot and you following the doctor's orders. Did you think you'd start watering without me? Good thing it started to rain, huh?"