“Where is she?” The words came thick and alien. Luke leaned into the wall and struggled to control the spasms that racked his overtaxed muscles. Collier closed the book that lay open in his lap, he leaned forward in the upholstered chair and met Luke’s eyes. There was no fear in his gaze, nothing but a calm sadness that twisted in Luke’s gut.
“Luke,” he said softly, bending his long fingers over the ends of the armrests.
“Where is she, Allan?” Luke managed past the fist that seemed lodged in his throat. “Where is Joey?”
Collier’s hands tightened, clenching into the soft leather of the chair until it dimpled under his fingers. “She hasn’t been here, Luke,” he murmured. “I haven’t seen her.”
Luke took a single menacing step away from the wall, his muscles bunching and shifting with the suppressed need to change. The beast was very close to the surface, far too close. “You’re lying, Allan,” he said. “You know where she is.”
“I’ve never lied to you, Luke,” Collier said. He stood up slowly, his gaze never dropping, and took a slow and careful step forward. His voice and movements were those of a man confronted by a dangerous and unpredictable animal, and Luke stood very still and trembled with the conflicts that seemed bent on tearing him apart.
“She left me,” Luke admitted harshly, the words searing like acid. “You must know where she is. Tell me, Allan. Don’t make me…” He shut his eyes, unable to voice the threat. The whisper of another careful footfall brushed the carpet under his feet.
“I know you won’t hurt me, Luke,” Collier said. Luke opened his eyes to find his old friend closer, too close, too old and fragile and earnest with his eyes full of trust and sympathy. “You won’t do something that could destroy both of us, and her.” Another step and his gentle doctor’s hand was inches away from Luke’s rigid arm, from his fingers curved into claws that could down Collier with a single casual blow.
“Where is she?” Luke rasped, pleading for release. “Please. Don’t do this.” His nerves and muscles spasmed again as Collier’s cool palm closed over his fingers, bending the claw into a fist. There was no choice but to endure it in utter stillness or risk the destruction of all that he was. All that he loved.
“Luke.” There was a terrible sadness in the word. “I was afraid—I was afraid this might happen. I prayed that it wouldn’t.”
From some fragile place of sanity deep within him Luke felt a bitter humor rising. “Don’t lecture me now, Allan.” He drew in a deep, shuddering breath and let it out again. “Don’t push me.”
The pressure of Collier’s hand on his was steady. “No lectures, Luke. You’re stronger than you believe, strong enough to know what is right. You always have been.”
“No.” The denial came without shame, numb certainty overwhelming the desperate fury. “You’re wrong, Allan. My mother…”
“I loved your mother,” Collier sighed. Luke felt him tremble. “But you are stronger.” With a soft groan Luke tried to wrench his fist from Colliers grasp and failed. “Love can’t be forced, Luke. Don’t hurt her—and yourself—by trying to take what must be given.”
With infinite care Luke took one step back, and then another, drawing Collier with him until they stood in the doorway. Night air drifted down the corridor, promising release. “I can’t let her go,” he whispered. “I can’t.”
“Give her time, Luke.” He heard Collier’s voice from some distant place, a world he was no longer a part of. “She came here to lay her past to rest, but you never gave her the chance to find her own future. Give her time to be true to herself.”
There were no more words, no answer to give, the ability to speak had been taken from him as he stood shivering with the finality of his loss. It settled into his bones, paralyzing him, pulling him into an eternal darkness. And as he turned to give himself to the void, the dying thread of the bond burst into sudden and vibrant life.
Joey. He felt her as if she stood beside him, as if her blood coursed through his veins and her heart beat in time to his own. Collier had no chance to protest or question. Within a second Luke had flung himself out into the corridor and beyond, the night clothing his naked body in darkness. There was no time to think, no time to will the change. He followed the pull of the bond to where it led.