An Excerpt From: Dream Stalker

© Copyright Elisa Adams, 2002.  

All Rights Reserved, Ellora's Cave, Inc.

Chapter 1

Alex followed the trail marked by trampled leaves and twigs at her feet. The nearly full moon cast an eerie glow on her surroundings and shadows loomed close in the night around her. The clouds gathering in the night sky promised an evening storm. The faint scent of decay permeated the crisp fall air and marked the presence of the killer. This might be the night that she was finally able to lay all her nightmares to rest.

There was movement just ahead, a stirring in the brush. She was close—closer than she’d ever been. Her pulse raced and her blood pounded through her veins. She took a deep breath and moved forward, silently through the trees. She‘d been waiting so long for this moment. All she had to do was reach out and grab it.

For six months it had taunted and teased her. It always remained by her side but just out of her grasp, a constant reminder of what she’d created. This time it was going to be different. This time it was her turn. She wasn’t going to let it escape again.

Snapping twigs on the path behind her grabbed her attention and distracted her from her goal. Footsteps. Her hands clenched into fists and she crouched lower to the ground. Holding completely still, she waited for the intruder to get closer before she attacked.

A quick glance over her shoulder told her it was a man—a human. He was big, but nothing she couldn’t handle. She lunged and rammed her shoulder into his legs, knocking him to the ground with a thud. He grunted as his back slammed against the dirt path. In an instant she was on top of him, pinning him to the cold, rocky ground. Her fist connected with his chin, and she felt a sliver of satisfaction when he growled in pain.

“Who are you, and what do you want?” She raised a large rock above her head, poised to bash it into his skull if he didn’t give her a reasonable explanation.

“Why, Alexandra Duvall, you never cease to amaze me.” The man’s voice registered immediately, and her breath stuck in her throat. Jason Connor.

She swore under her breath and tried to think of a way to get rid of him. Knowing his personal stake in catching the monster, she should have expected him. She should have recognized him sooner.

“Damn it, Jason. Are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“I’m impressed. I didn’t think you had it in you. I guess I was wrong. Why don’t you put the rock down, sweetheart, and we can catch up on old times. What’s it been, four months?”

The amusement she detected in his voice made her want to slam the rock into the side of his head. Instead she let it drop to the ground as she stood up, wanting to put as much distance between them as possible.

“It’s been six months, not four, but you already knew that. And let’s get one thing straight right now, Jason. If you call me sweetheart one more time, you’re going to lose a limb.” She kicked a branch out of her way as she started back down the path to where she’d left her car. Thanks to Dr. Know-It-All, she’d lost the trail. The thing was probably long gone by now, and it might be a few days before she caught the trail again.

Damn it. She wanted to ring his big neck. Who did he think he was strutting in here and pretending to know what he was doing? He might be one of the more highly trained researchers in his field, but she’d created this monster. If anyone could stop it, it was going to be her.

“Cut the arrogant act, Jason, and go away.”

“Leaving so soon?” Jason practically sprang off the ground and stepped in front of her. If he thought his size would intimidate her into cooperating with him, the man had another thing coming.

He leaned his hip against a tree trunk and crossed his arms over his chest. “Where are you rushing off to?”

“I’m going back to my cabin to get some sleep.” She sidestepped around him easily. “Thanks to you, I lost my chance at catching that thing tonight.”

“I would have had the thing myself if you hadn’t been out here snooping around, so don’t give me that attitude, Alex.” Jason grabbed her arm and pulled her to a stop. “Back off or you’re going to get hurt.”

She raised her eyebrows at him. “Is that a threat?”

 He ran a finger along the underside of her jaw, his expression hot and menacing. His fingers tightened around her arm to the point of near-pain. She took a deep breath to steel her body against the wave of heat that passed through her at his touch. It didn’t help. Whenever Jason put his hands on her, her body responded immediately. Instead of shoving him away like she should, she wanted more. She wanted his hands on her.

He wound his fingers through her ponytail and pulled her head back, his mouth barely inches from hers. His breath fanned across her lips when he spoke, sending chills down her spine. “It’s not a threat, my dear Miss Duvall. It’s a promise.”

He crushed his mouth down on hers, forcing his tongue into her mouth. There was nothing gentle about the kiss, just as she knew there was nothing gentle about the man. She still ached for him, even now. She brought her arm up around his neck, her fingers tangling in his hair as she pulled him closer. It had been so long, and she’d missed him so much. Her body cried out for more when he broke the kiss.

He held her close for a moment before he pushed her away. It only took a moment for her to come to her senses. What was she thinking, letting him touch her like that? Why did she touch him? The answer was clear—she had no choice. When Jason was near, she had no control over her body.

A rustling in the underbrush just ahead of them saved Alex from having to reply. She took off into the trees, streaking through the woods at a breakneck pace to try and catch up with whatever it was in front of her. She broke free of the woods a few minutes later, coming to a stop on the dirt road where she’d left her truck. The killer was nowhere in sight.

“I’m beginning to think you’re bad luck, Alex.” Jason ran out of the woods and came to a stop next to her. “This is the second time tonight I’ve missed that thing because of you.”

Alex spun on her heel, her hands fisted tightly at her sides. Despite the fact that he had at least eight inches on her and probably outweighed her by a hundred pounds, she knew he’d never really do anything to hurt her—at least not physically. Besides, she’d held her own against much worse than a disgruntled scientist in her lifetime.

“Why don’t you just stay out of my way, Dr. Connor, and let me do what I came here for. That monster is ruining my life, and it needs to be stopped.” She glared at him. “I’m not giving up until that happens.”

“Then I guess you’re stuck with me, because I’m not about to give up, either.” Jason’s tone was as arrogant as usual. “You used to work for the Center. You know as well as I do that I have to get this thing. What happened to you was a mistake. When are you going to accept that?”

A mistake? That was the understatement of the year. Jason, Noah Leeds, and the staff at the Leeds Center had made a very big mistake when they released Alex’s dream killer from her mind. Now she was paying the consequences.

“You promised to destroy that thing and get it out of my head. I’m going out of my mind.” She ran a hand through her hair. “Since you and your cronies from the Leeds Center haven’t been able to stop it, I’m going to do it myself.”

 “That’s being mighty hopeful for such a little thing like you.” He barked out a laugh. “And you seem to be forgetting something. Noah promised to get rid of that thing. I was just running the machines. And should I mention the fact that you knew the procedure was experimental when you signed up for it? As Noah’s research assistant, you went into it with your eyes wide open.”

She blew out a breath. Every word he spoke was true, and that’s what got her the most. She really didn’t have anyone to blame but herself. She’d subjected herself to being the guinea pig for her boss’s experiment. No one had forced her into anything. But she wasn’t going to stand here and take this crap from a man she used to think cared about her.

“Go to hell, Jason.” She started to walk away.

“If I were you, Alex, I’d consider being a little nicer to me.” Jason’s comment stopped her in her tracks.

“And why would I want to do that?”

“Because I’m your only way out of here tonight, and it’s supposed to storm.”

She followed his gaze to her truck. When she saw what he was looking at, her heart sank. The windshield was smashed and the tires had been slashed to ribbons. Damn it. “Did you do that?”

“I don’t need to resort to petty violence. I have much better ways of getting to you, don’t I?” He brushed a hand across her neck and she couldn’t stop the shiver that coursed through her body. The look in his eyes told her he hadn’t missed it, either. “Need a ride, Alex?”

She didn’t relish spending any time trapped in a car with him. The man might be a top-notch research scientist, but he had the personality of a doorknob and not enough tact to fill a thimble. He was rude and insulting, and only after one thing from her.

Information.  

It didn’t help that she’d been head over heels for the guy since day one.

She wanted to tell him she didn’t need a ride, or anything else from him. But it was at least a ten mile hike back to her cabin, and it would likely be raining by the time she got there. A low rumble of thunder and a smattering of rain drops made the decision for her. Muttering a low curse, she got into his car...

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