Check Mate by Beverly Barton Read Free Book Online Page B

any ordinary mortal? He might be the product of genetic engineering and possess superior intelligence, but he was still a human being. Was he so sure he had bewitched her, that she would do him no harm? Was his ego really that huge? Or did he suspect the truth? Had he figured out who she really was?
    With a steady hand, far calmer than her rioting nerves, she gave him the first injection, then separated the needle from the syringe and placed it in a safety container.
    "How long before it takes effect?" Burgess asked.
    "Almost immediately," Mariah replied.
    Within minutes Jake's eyelids drooped and his breathing slowed. When she placed her hand on his shoulder, he glanced up at her and grinned. And every feminine instinct within her wanted to reassure him that she wasn't going to harm him, that he was safe with her.
    "I'm feeling a bit woozy, Doc," Jake told her.
    "Good. That's how you're supposed to feel." Mariah reached inside the medical bag and removed the second hypodermic.
    Jake's eyes widened for a moment and he pressed against the back of the chair, as if he were trying to move away from her. "I thought you said only one injection."
    "The first one was to relax you." She walked over, gently rubbed his arm and pointed the needle. "This one will make you more cooperative."
    "It won't work," he said. "I'm not going to let you get inside my head."
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    "We'll see." She injected him with the secret drug, then glanced at Burgess, who seemed totally enthralled by the whole procedure. "Thank you, but I should be able to take it from here. You may go back downstairs. If I need you, I'll let you know."
    "Yes, ma'am."
    As soon as she heard Burgess's heavy footsteps trudging down the stairs, Marian closed the bedroom door. She was way out of her league on this type of procedure, so all she could do was pretend she knew what she was doing. In other words, fake it.
    "You've got everything set up just right, don't you?" Jake's words weren't slurred, but he spoke slowly, as if talking took great effort. "The right lighting... the monotonous, heartbeat rhythm... the cool temperature. What next, Doc—a voice roll?"
    "How very astute of you, Jake," Mariah said, deliberately pacing her words so that they rolled off her tongue at approximately sixty beats per minute. "You seem to know a little something about hypnosis techniques."
    "Want to tell me what was in the second hypodermic? So far, I haven't felt any effects."
    "You won't." she told him. "Not yet."
    "I don't know of any drug that—"
    She clamped her hand on his shoulder. "It's an old remedy. Tried and true. It works on most patients."
    "Is that right?"
    "Just relax, let your mind drift and think about something pleasant."
    "I can do that. Let me see." When Jake tried to lift his arm, he found the task rather difficult, but managed to lay his hand over his heart. "I'll think about escaping. That's a pleasant thought." He reached up and laid his hand on hers where she gripped his shoulder. "Or I could think about making love to you. An equally delectable thought."
    "Whichever you'd like. Anything pleasant will do." How she kept her voice steady, she didn't know. Just hearing him say the words "making love to you" put erode images in her mind. "Are you relaxed?"
    "Mmm."
    "Are you thinking of something pleasant?"
    His hand inched backward until he was able to caress her hip. "Very pleasant."
    After removing her hand from his shoulder, she moved backward, just enough so she was out of his reach. "Now, Jake, I want you to count backward for me, beginning with one hundred."
    He chuckled softly. But he didn't start counting.
    "Jake, did you hear me?"
    "Tell me what was in the second syringe and I might count for you."
    "You don't want me to bring Burgess back upstairs, do you?"
    "You wouldn't do that."
    "And just what makes you think I wouldn't?"
    "Because you don't want him or anyone else to hurt me. Do you,