'Captain Miller, I'd like to present my daughter, Lily Whitney. Dr. Lily Whitney.' Peter's gaze never left Ryland's face. 'I've asked her to join us; I hope you don't mind.'
The shock couldn't have been more complete. Peter Whitney's daughter? Ryland let out his breath slowly, shrugged his broad shoulders casually, another ripple of menace. He didn't feel casual. Everything inside of him stilled. Calmed. Reached. He studied the woman. Her eyes were incredible, but wary. Intelligent. Knowledgeable. As if she recognized him, too, in some elemental way. Her eyes were a deep startling blue, like the middle of a clear, fresh pool. A man could lose his mind, his freedom in eyes like hers. She was average height-not tall, but not exceedingly short. She had a woman's figure encased in a gray-green suit of some kind that managed to draw attention to every lush curve. She had walked with a decided limp, but when he looked her over for damage, he could see nothing to indicate injury. More than all of that, the moment he saw her face, the moment she entered the room, his soul seemed to reach for hers. To recognize hers. His breath stilled in his body and he could only stare at her.
She was looking back at him and he knew the sight wasn't very reassuring. At his best, he looked a warrior-at his worst, he looked a savage fighter. There was no way to soften his expression or lessen the scars on his face or shave off the dark stubble marring his stubborn jawline. He was stocky with a fighter's compact build, carrying most of his weight in his upper body, his chest and arms, his broad shoulders. His hair was thick and black, and it curled when it wasn't kept tight against his skull.
'Captain Miller.' Her voice was soothing, gentle, pleasant. Sexy. A blend of smoke and heat that seared him right through his belly. 'How nice to meet you. My father thought I might be of some use in the research. I haven't had much time to go over the data, but I'll be happy to try to help.'
He had never reacted so forcefully to a voice before. The sound seemed to wrap him up in satin sheets, rubbing and caressing his skin until he felt himself break out in a sweat. The image was so vivid that for a moment he could only stare at her, imagining her naked body writhing with pleasure beneath his. In the midst of his struggle to survive, his physical reaction to her was shocking.
Color crept up her neck, delicately tinged her cheeks. Her long lashes fluttered, drifted down, and she looked away from him to her father. 'This room is very exposed. Who came up with the design? I would think it would be a difficult way to live, even for a short period.'
'You mean like a lab rat?' Ryland asked softly, deliberately, not wanting any of them to think they were fooling him by bringing in the woman. 'Because that's what I am. Dr. Whitney has his own human rats to play with.'
Lily's dark gaze jumped to his face. One eyebrow shot up. 'I'm sorry, Captain Miller, was I misinformed, or did you agree to volunteer for this assignment?' There was a small challenge in her voice.
'Captain Miller volunteered, Lily,' Peter Whitney said. 'He was unprepared for the brutal results, as was I. I've been searching for a way to reverse the process but so far, everything I've tried has failed.'
'I don't believe that's the proper way to handle this,' Colonel Higgens snapped. He glared at Peter Whitney, his bushy brows drawing together in a frown of disapproval. 'Captain Miller is a soldier. He volunteered for this mission and I must insist he carry it out to its conclusion. We don't need the process reversed, we need it perfected.'
Ryland had no trouble reading the colonel's emotions. The man didn't want Lily Whitney anywhere near Ryland or his men. He wanted Ryland taken out behind the laboratories and shot. Better yet, dissected so they could all see what was going on in his brain. Colonel Higgens was afraid of Ryland Miller and the other men in the paranormal unit. Anything he feared, Higgens destroyed.
'Colonel Higgens, I don't think you fully understand what these men are going through, what is happening to their brains.' Dr. Whitney was pursuing what was obviously a longstanding argument between them. 'We've already lost several men…'
'They knew the risks,' Higgens retorted, glowering at Miller. 'This is an important experiment. We need these men to perform. The loss of a few men, while tragic, is an acceptable loss considering the importance of what these men can do.'
Ryland didn't look at Higgens. He kept his glittering gaze fixed on Lily Whitney. But his entire mind reached out. Took hold. Closed like a vise.
Lily's head snapped up. She gasped out a soft protest. Her gaze dropped to Ryland's hands. She watched his fingers slowly begin to curl as if around a thick throat. She shook her head, a slight protest.
Higgens coughed. A barking grunt. His mouth hung open as he gasped for air. Peter Whitney and the young guard both reached for the colonel, trying to open his stiff shirt collar, trying to help him breathe. The colonel staggered, was caught and lowered to the floor by the scientist.
Ryland's dark brow shot up and his gleaming gaze met Lily's. The doctor's daughter was definitely telepathic. She was calm about it, her gaze steady on his, not in the least intimidated by the danger emanating from him. She appeared as cool as ice.
Ryland allowed his breath to escape in a soft, controlled stream, clearing his lungs, clearing his mind. Deliberately he turned his back on the writhing man and paced across the cell, his fingers slowly uncurling.
Higgens went into a fit of coughing, tears swimming in his eyes. He pointed a shaky finger toward Ryland. 'He tried to kill me, you all saw it.'
Peter Whitney sighed and walked with heavy footsteps across the room to stare at the computer. 'I'm tired of the melodrama, Colonel. There is always a jump on the sensors in the computers when there is a surge of power. There's nothing here at all. Miller is safely locked in a cage; he didn't do anything at all. Either you're trying to sabotage my project or you have a personal vendetta against Captain Miller. In any case, I'm going to write to the general and insist they send another liaison.'
Colonel Higgens swore again. 'I'll have no more talk about reversing the process, Whitney, and you know what I think about bringing your daughter on board. We don't need another damn bleeding heart on this project-we need results.'
'My security clearance, Colonel Higgens, is of the highest level and so is my commitment to this project. I don't have the necessary data at this time, but I can assure you I'll put in whatever time is necessary to find the answers needed.' Even as she spoke, Lily was looking at the computer screen.
Ryland could read her thoughts. Whatever was on the screen puzzled her as much as what her father was saying, but she was willing to cover for him. She was making it up as she went along. As calm and as cool as ever. He couldn't remember the last time he had smiled, but the impulse was there. He kept his back to the group, not certain he could keep a straight face while she lied to the colonel. Lily Whitney had no idea what was going on; her father had given her very little information and she was simply winging it. Her dislike of Higgens, compounded by her father's unusual behavior, had put her firmly in Ryland's camp for the moment.
He had no idea what Peter Whitney's game was, but the man was buried deep in the mire. The experiment to enhance psychic ability and bring together a fighting unit had been his project, his brainchild. Peter Whitney had been the man who'd persuaded Ryland the experiment had merit. That his men would be safe and that they would better serve their country. Ryland couldn't read the doctor as he now could most men, but whatever Whitney was up to, Ryland had become convinced it wasn't anything that would benefit him or his men. Donovans Corporation had a stench about it. If there was one thing Ryland knew for certain, Donovans was about money and personal profit, not national security.
'Can you read that code your father uses for his notes?' Higgens asked Lily Whitney, suddenly losing interest in Ryland. 'Gibberish if you ask me. Why the hell don't you just put your work in English like a normal human being?' He snapped the question at Peter Whitney irritably.
At once Ryland swung around, his gray gaze thoughtful as it rested on the colonel. There was something there, something he couldn't get hold of. It was shifting, moving, ideas formulating and growing. Higgens's mind seemed a black ravine, twisted and curved and suddenly cunning.
Lily shrugged. 'I grew up reading his codes; of course I can read it.'
Ryland sensed her growing puzzlement as she stared at the combination of numbers, symbols, and letters across the computer screen.
'What the hell are you doing getting into my private computer files, Frank?' Peter Whitney demanded, glaring
