“Please don’t let him kill me,” she prayed just as the fog began to shift and clear. She heard something rustle again and tried to swallow past the lump in her throat.
CHAPTER 17
“I have a weapon,” Darcy said, her voice trembling.
“Maybe if you hit me this time, I’ll regain my memory,” Surlock said as he stepped from behind a tree. He watched as Darcy dropped the stick, and the clothes that were crushed to her chest. She plowed her way through the underbrush and fell into his arms. He pulled her tight against him. He wasn’t sure what had happened, but he knew he’d missed being with her.
“I was so scared,” she whispered, and he could hear the tears in her voice.
“I know. So was I.”
“What happened?”
He shook his head. “I don’t remember.”
She leaned back and looked up at him. “Nothing?”
“It’s as if I lost the time from right after we mated until a few minutes ago. I could feel something trying to take over my body.” He grimaced. “I think it might have accomplished it this time.”
“But how did you get back?”
“I’m not sure. I heard a shrill, high-pitched sound, different from the humming. It was as though it came from a long distance away. I was able to make out some of the words then.” He paused, thoughtful for a moment. “‘Stop that infernal noise.’” He frowned. “Yes, that’s what the voice said.”
He looked at Darcy, but she didn’t meet his eyes. She was holding something back, not telling him what she was thinking. He had a feeling she knew what had happened to him.
“You know what’s going on, don’t you?” he questioned her.
She did look at him then, and her eyes were full of fear. His own gut clenched.
“You have to tell me,” he said.
“Get dressed first. It might be easier to show you.” She made her way out into the open, picked the clothes up, then handed them to him. “You’re probably starving. You can eat first.”
After dressing, he joined her. “That sounds good. I feel as if I’ve been running most of the night.”
“But you are hungry?”
“Starved.” He watched her, wondering why she looked relieved.
“Good.” She let out a deep breath. “I was afraid you’d be … uh … full.”
They started back toward the house. When they were almost there, Darcy stopped. “If anyone asks, you made your bed this morning and went for a walk. A very long walk.”
“Why?”
“Because they think you were out all night. I don’t want them to get suspicious if anything happened last night.”
“What do you think might have happened?”
“Why worry when we don’t know for sure? Everything will be fine,” she said, speaking almost to herself.
They went inside. Darcy opened the kitchen door a little and asked Ms. Abernathy if she could fix Surlock something to eat. The next thing Surlock knew, Ms. Abernathy burst past Darcy and hurried to him.
“You’re okay, then,” she said, stopping only a couple of feet from him. She quickly looked him over. “I was afraid you’d gotten lost or injured.”
He tried to look contrite. “I’m sorry I worried everyone. I awoke early this morning and decided to go for a walk. I guess I went farther than I planned. The countryside is magnificent early in the morning.”
“Next time leave a note,” she scolded. “Now have a seat. We just brought everything back to the kitchen, but it’s still warm. I’ll fix you a plate. Darcy, would you like anything?”
“Just coffee.”
Ms. Abernathy hurried from the room.
“She really was concerned about you.” Darcy made her way to the table and pulled out one of the chairs.
Surlock sat in the one beside her. “Ms. Abernathy and I haven’t spoken that much.”
“But you played a song that moved her to tears, and you listened when she said you couldn’t run around naked, and I think she probably sees just how much I care about you.”
“Do you care about me?”
“Yes.” She folded her hands in front of her. “I was so afraid last night when … when—”
“When what?” he prodded when she didn’t finish her sentence.
“We’ll talk later, after you’ve finished eating.”
Again, she wouldn’t meet his gaze and it made him wonder what exactly she had witnessed last night. Before he could question her further, Ms. Abernathy and two of the maids brought the food and drinks.
When everything except Darcy’s coffee was sitting in front of him, Ms. Abernathy smiled. “And if you’re still hungry after all this, there’s plenty more.”
He looked at the pancakes piled high, the saucer of bacon. On another plate were scrambled eggs, hash browns and toast. “This will be plenty,” he told her, knowing it wouldn’t be long until lunch. He might not recognize the food, but he enjoyed it.
Surlock finished off the last bite, then pushed away the plate. “Ms. Abernathy is a good cook.”
Darcy smiled and for the first time since they’d found each other, the dark shadows were gone from her eyes.
“She calls it home cooking, stick-to-your-ribs food. Her momma was from the Deep South and she taught her everything she knows. I always gain weight every time I come down here, but it’s so worth it.”
“My cook is not as good as Ms. Abernathy, but I enjoy her meals. I think I will miss Ms. Abernathy’s dishes when I go home to New Symtaria,” he said without thinking, then picked up his orange juice and took a drink.
“And where exactly is New Symtaria?” Darcy asked, placing the white napkin beside her cup.
He set his glass down. “Everyone knows where New Symtaria is,” he said, then grabbed his head as the humming in his ears increased.
“Surlock, it’s okay. Don’t try to remember.”
He felt her arms go around him; then she cradled his head against her chest. He’d remembered where he was from. Relief rushed through him. “I need to remember it all,” he said, straining for something more that would unlock the rest of his memories.
“Shh, it’s okay. You remembered a little more and that’s good, but now you need to relax. Take a deep breath, then slowly exhale. We at least have the whole name of where you’re from. It wasn’t just Symtaria. It was New Symtaria and that might make a difference when we search for it.”
The humming wasn’t quite so intense this time and it wasn’t followed by the screaming, so he supposed that was an improvement.
“Do you want me to get your eardrops?”
“No, it’s easing.” It was as if he could hear heavy steel doors slamming shut on the room that contained the rest of his memories. Frustration filled him. He wanted to know everything.
“Don’t try to force your memories to return,” she told him as she moved away.
He knew she was right, but it didn’t mean he had to like it. Something suddenly occurred to him. “If I have a cook, then I probably have money.”
“Probably,” she said.
That was good because he wanted to take care of Darcy in the style she was accustomed to. Odd, for the life of him, he couldn’t remember anything about money or ever having used it.
He needed to know more, and he had a feeling Darcy had the key that would unlock another door. “Tell me what happened last night after I blacked out.”
She swallowed hard, and her hands trembled. Surlock had a bad feeling about what she might know, but she had to tell him.
“Okay, but remember that I won’t leave you, no matter what.” Her mouth turned down. “Actually, since I’m probably part of what happened, then I don’t really have a choice.”
Now she worried him. What did she know that he didn’t?
Darcy bit her bottom lip as she went inside the media room and shut the door behind them.
“Are we going to watch another secret agent movie?” he asked.