Shadows to Light (Shadows of Justice 5) by Regan Black Page B

quietly. If she had, Callahan would still have eyes on her father and Jameson would never have had to suffer.
    There was guilt, but as the sun came up, she discovered a hearty dose of anger ready to burn through it.
    How could anyone trained as a healer deal out the kind of harm they'd heaped on Jameson?
    Sure she believed in self defense, had been caught a time or two herself and used her gift to calm and disarm. But those two had been all about the offensive from the moment they'd cornered her.
    Why?
    Working out here in the world used to be a respected decision, a worthy goal for healers of any level of talent. Now, they kept their most gifted locked away in the safety of their closed community. She'd never heard a valid reason or inciting cause for the limitations.
    "Mira?"
    She smiled as Jameson woke up. "Good morning."
    "Morning?" He looked around, clearly surprised to find himself tucked into bed. "What happened?"
    "You needed some rest. Feeling better?"
    He pushed a hand through his short dark hair, rubbed at his neck. "Yeah. Thanks. What about you?"
    "I'm good."
    "You didn't sleep?"
    "A little."
    "You look tired."
    "Gee, thanks."
    He sat up now, scowling at her. "Are you ever not a nurse?"
    She wasn't feeling very nurse-like at the moment. It took a valiant act of will to focus on his scowl when she wanted to get lost in the gorgeous sight of his bare, chiseled torso. Last night she'd nearly tucked herself in next to him. "What do you mean?"
    "Shouldn't you take care of yourself once in awhile?"
    Not while others need me, she thought. It was easier to deal with what she could fix , to take personal satisfaction in using her ability to the fullest. Stung by his attitude, she turned away. "I take care of myself. Did so just last night."
    "The trace device. Right. But that –"
    "And I'll go take care of me right now." She forced her lips into a smile. "Can you make coffee while I'm in the shower?"
    "Mira, wait."
    She ignored him, wishing she knew how to do what she thought he was asking. How to be a woman rather than the healer on-call all the time.
    No, her life hadn't been conducive to putting down roots, to investing in people or relationships. As she shed the uniform, she wondered why he didn't understand. The way she saw it, his profession was much the same. Moving from assignment to assignment as needed. She didn't know him much beyond his ability to kiss her senseless, but she knew their chosen careers went beyond just work for both of them.
    And she needed to pull her head out of all of life's what ifs and focus on the task at hand. Her father needed help. She cleaned up and dressed again, and hoped Callahan had delivered supplies and new intel by now.
    Jameson poured her a cup of coffee when she entered the kitchen.
    "Thanks," she said, recognizing the peace offering. "I'll fix breakfast."
    He'd been busy cleaning up too. She noticed the damp hair and his jaw shaved smooth. She tried not to stare.
    "I ordered delivery."
    "Okay." What were they supposed to do now? Her small talk wouldn't impress him any more than her bedside manner.
    He watched her over the rim of his coffee mug, the picture of serenity.
    "Just say it already," she snapped.
    "Say what?"
    "Anything, I just can't stand the silence."
    "I'm sorry I bit your head off."
    It wasn't what she expected. At all. "Happens all the time. In my line of work we consider it a good recovery sign."
    But his face went cold again and she just didn't want to fight about it. "What did you order?"
    "The special from Leanore's." He finished his coffee and set the mug on the counter. "You can't go outside or leave this apartment."
    She nodded. "We're too close to a place I've been."
    "If they lost your signal it's likely they'd put someone on the street to track you down."
    Aside from the obvious insult of escape, she couldn't quite understand why the Five were so determined to subdue her gift.
    Jameson stalked to the window overlooking the street that separated Dakota's