Page 50 of Boxed In

He scrambled frantically for an escape plan. Olivia’s apartment was on the ground floor. If he went back down there, would he be trapped? Or was there another way out? He’d seen a door. Did it lead to the outside?

He didn’t know. But he was pretty sure he didn’t want to tangle with those guys. He debated just walking past them like he was a resident of the building. But his hands were shaking so badly that he knew he looked guilty of something.

Quickly he turned and headed down the stairs, praying that he wasn’t going to end up hiding under the steps.

oOo

Olivia felt an icy chill skitter over her skin. “What is that supposed to mean? What danger? You told me before that the box could be like a bomb. Do you mean something else? Like a terrorist attack? Do you have some inside information?”

“Your world. Isn’t it in chaos? Wars? Diseases? And the terrorists you spoke of?”

“Yes,” she murmured.

“It is the honor and the privilege of the Moon Priests to watch over the world of men.”

Olivia tipped her head to the side. “Then why are we in such bad shape?”

“Because they have lost some of their power, and they can no longer guard you effectively.”

“Wait a minute. Are you telling me that they lost the box a long time ago?”

“Yes,” he answered, the syllable coming out hard and clipped.

“But you’re supposed to be protecting it. Why didn’t you come out of it and bring it back—like you’re doing now?”

“Because there was no one suitable to help me. My body wasn’t in the box. Just my spirit. And I cannot simply possess the air. I sensed a quality in Luke that would make him receptive to me.”

“Receptive?”

“He has . . .” He fumbled for a word. “Latent psychic powers. And I thought he was strong enough to take my essence without dying.”

She gasped as she caught the magnitude of that last statement.

“You leaped into Luke’s body, knowing you could have killed him? Thanks a lot!”

“It was a calculated risk, but I was very confident in him. Not like that weakling—Peterbalm. He was afraid the moment he got near the box.”

“Right, but I was afraid, too.”

“You are a woman. I would never take the body of a woman.”

“You male chauvinist piece of work!”

“We were talking about Luke. If he did not have a strong mind, he would never have worked the puzzle.”

“Oh great,” Luke muttered. The two of them might be “integrated,” but he was still capable of joining the conversation on his own, if his feelings were strong enough. “Thanks for telling me.”

“You are a good partner,” Zabastian said, and Olivia knew he was still talking to Luke.

He fell silent, and she stared at him. She had the feeling the two men inside Luke’s body were still talking to each other, only now the exchange was completely silent, so they had cut her out of the conversation.

Zabastian finally turned to her and gave her a sharp look. “You tried to call your friend. Can I trust you not to make any more calls?”

His voice was none too gentle. Not like the way Luke had always treated her.

But everything had changed this evening.

She licked her lips. Not long ago, this man had been her lover—one of the most skilled and considerate lovers she had ever met. But she still didn’t know if something real had happened between them. Or whether she could trust him.

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