by Juniper Hart
Sabine felt her shoulders relax.
Why are you so paranoid? she demanded of herself, ashamed for whatever she had been thinking—even if she wasn’t entirely sure what that was.
“I’ve heard that German and English are very similar,” she offered. “I’m sure you’ll have no problem.”
He chuckled.
“You overestimate my abilities as a student,” he laughed. From behind her, she heard Hans clear his throat.
“A drink to start?” Sabine asked again.
“A coffee, danke.” He turned his attention to the menu and Sabine hurried off to get his beverage.
“I don’t pay you to stand around flirting,” Hans grumbled, his eyes narrowing on the single man.
If I didn’t know better, I’d say the crabby goat is jealous, she thought.
Sabine laughed.
“That’s exactly what you pay me for,” she reminded him. Hans snorted and disappeared into the back office, leaving her alone in the café with three tables. When she returned to the young man, he pointed at the menu.
“Apple pie,” he announced. Again, Sabine felt her shoulders stiffen, her eyes locking on his. She could read something in his expression that she didn’t understand.
“Apple pie?” she murmured. “Of course.”
“It will get me in the mood to practice my English,” he explained, reaching into the attaché case at his side. Sabine watched as he withdrew a tablet and unlocked it.
“I’ll get that for you,” she mumbled, suddenly uncertain.
He’s asking me if I speak English. He’s ordering apple pie. Is he trying to tell me something?
She swallowed the lump of nervousness in her throat. Her palms were sweaty when she left the pie at his table.
She was sure she had never seen him around town before but what was that really saying? She was new to Hude herself. Small as the town was, she didn’t claim to know everyone.
But I bet Hans would know him if he belonged here.
“Danke, Sabine,” the man said as she turned away. Sabine’s blood ran cold and she whirled around to confront him, eyes flashing.
“Who are you?” she demanded. “How do you know me?”
His head jerked up in surprise, his crystalline eyes growing large.
“I-I’m Klaus Bremner,” he replied slowly. “And I just read your nametag.”
Humiliation colored Sabine’s face as she dropped her eyes to look at the plastic plate on her chest. She had forgotten all about it until that moment.
“I’m sorry,” she muttered, backing away to retreat into the kitchen. Her cheeks were flaming with embarrassment.
What is wrong with me? she thought, aghast by how she’d acted. But the truth was, she had been on pins and needles from the moment she had opened her eyes and found herself in a world where she recognized no one and no one recognized her. She was desperately clinging to clues for answers but at the same time, she worried that her attack had not merely been some random robbery gone horribly awry.
Don’t be absurd. It’s been a month. If anyone was coming to finish you off, they would have done it by now.
She inhaled and smoothed her hands over the material of her apron, holding her head up to return to the front. Before she could change her mind, she approached Klaus’ table and gave him a wavering smile.
“I’m sorry,” she told him again. “I shouldn’t have talked to you that way.”
He raised his blond head and met her eyes with a chuckle.
“I’ve been spoken to in worse ways,” he promised. “But never by someone so beautiful.”
A hot flush tinged Sabine’s face and she looked away.
Stop it! she chided herself. You’re an amnesiac with a child growing in your belly. You’re in no position to be flirting with anyone.
Yet Klaus did not move his gaze away from her and Sabine realized she liked being looked at. How long had it been since anyone had seen her as anyone but the poor, lost woman from who knew where?
She gulped down all her reservations and returned his beam, brushing stray strands of hair out of her face as she looked at him.
“I’m sure you have seen your fair share of beautiful women,” she told him. Klaus chortled again.
“In Berlin, there are many lovely women,” he replied. “But I find country girls so much more…honest.”
The smile froze on Sabine’s face.
“I feel like I keep saying the wrong thing to you,” Klaus said, his own grin fading. “I’m sorry if I’m putting my foot in my mouth. You truly are a vision and I think I’m tripping over my own words.”
Sabine shook her head quickly.
“It’s not you, it’s me,” she told him. “I’m afraid I…”
She faltered, realizing that she was about to spill the sordid story to a perfect stranger.
“I don’t know many people around here,” she finished. “I’m new to Hude.”
“Me too!” Klaus replied excitedly, his eyes almost glowing. “Maybe we can go exploring some time. I’ve heard there is a haunted castle nearby.”
Sabine’s laughter bounced across the café.
“Haunted? Really?” she giggled. “Do you believe in ghosts?”
Klaus paused for a moment, a strange look shadowing his face before he responded.
“I think there are phenomena in this world that we can’t explain,” he replied slowly. “Don’t you?”
Sabine shrugged.
“I suppose,” she replied without any conviction. “But I think that’s more for Walpurgisnacht than reality.”
Klaus, who had just taken a sip of his coffee, began to sputter against the sip and Sabine watched him with wide-eyed concern.
“Are you all right?” she demanded, hurrying forward to clap him on the back.
“You don’t believe in witches either?” he sputtered when he caught his breath. Sabine eyed him warily, wondering if he was mocking her.
“Of course not,” she retorted with some annoyance. “I’m not a child celebrating Halloween.”
Klaus finally stopped his coughing and nodded, his eyes darting away.
“Good, good,” he said lightly. “I’ve met some women who are into some strange things. Vampires and werewolves…shifters.”
Sabine stared at him.
“Shifters?” she asked uncomprehendingly. Klaus laughed again.
“You probably don’t want to know,” he replied and Sabine agreed she did not care.
“So, what do you say?” Klaus asked, dabbing his mouth with a napkin.
“About what?”
“Would you care to explore the town with me one day?”
Sabine inhaled, realizing that he was officially asking her on a date.
I should say no. I have no business going off with a man like this, not when I’m in the condition I am…
“Ja, I’d like that,” she agreed before she could change her mind. Klaus’s face was a beacon of pleasure.
“Give me your phone and I’ll put my number in it,” he told her. Embarrassed, Sabine shook her head.
“I-I don’t have a cell,” she confessed. His eyebrows raised but he made no comment.
“Fine. I can take your landline,” he offered and Sabine nodded, feeling foolish.
He might not know who you are yet but he’s quickly going to learn that I’m a freak, she thought warily. It wasn’t too late to call the whole thing off.
What’s one afternoon? she reasoned, not wanting to deny Klaus his amusements. We’re just two people new in town. What’s the harm?
“Sabine?”
“Ja, ja, I can give you my home number,” she agreed, smiling. He entered the digits into his tablet.
“How about this weekend?” he asked.
“I work on Saturday until six,” she replied. “But I’m free on Sunday all day.”
Klaus nodded approvingly.
“I would like to have you all to myself for a day,” he agreed and Sabine blushed again but suddenly, her mind f
ogged for a moment. It wasn’t Klaus sitting before her but a burly man with onyx eyes, his expression filled with pain.
“I don’t want to say goodbye,” the specter said. “Let’s stay here forever.”
He was gone as quickly as he’d come and Sabine was left with her mouth agape, staring at Klaus’ confused expression.
“Are you all right, Sabine?” Klaus asked. She nodded quickly and shifted her eyes down, forcing a smile.
“Yes, but I should get back to my other tables,” she mumbled, hurrying off before Klaus could argue. Over and over in her head, the image of the attractive man with the burning eyes played in her head.
Is that the father of my child? Or is he the man who tried to kill me?
5
Dex remained parked outside of Sabine’s house for most of the day even though he knew that she was not there. He had no doubt now that something had happened to her, but he wouldn’t know more until he got into the house and did a search. Every moment that he did not set eyes upon her only increased his anxiety.
If she left belongings behind, toothbrush, important documents, things that would make her escape easier, it would mean that she had met with foul play. But if she had taken those things, it could lend credibility to the idea that she had simply blown town.
And gone where? Back to me?
That was an unnerving thought, that Sabine might be in Virginia looking for him as he scoured Germany in search of her. Yet he also knew that was highly unlikely. She’d had a month to find him.
He needed to bide his time until it got dark and he could break into her house unnoticed and see what he could find, even if his nerves were ready to snap.
It was the waiting that was killing him, particularly when his burner rang before dusk. He almost jumped out of his skin. No one had the number. He had only just gotten the device, after all.
He answered it without saying a word, but he didn’t have to wait long to figure out who was calling.
“Any sign of her yet?” Anatoli asked. His eyes narrowed into slits as he realized she had somehow located him.
“How did you get this number?” he growled. The director laughed shortly.
“Are you really asking me questions like that right now?” she demanded. “I’m me, Dex.”
He inhaled and steeled his temper. He was still angry at her for the tracking devices but it wasn’t the time to start with that.
“She’s been missing from work for a month,” he informed Anatoli. “Apparently she left without word.”
“That’s not good,” Anatoli said grimly.
“No, it’s not,” he agreed. “I need to get into her house and see what she left behind.”
“What are you waiting for?”
“Dark.”
“Ah.”
There was a slight pause as Anatoli considered what he’d told her.
“You don’t think she took off, do you?” she finally asked.
“I never did,” he replied shortly.
“Keep me posted,” Anatoli sighed.
“I won’t have this burner long,” he told her.
“I figured as much. Don’t worry. I’ll find you if I need you, but you really should keep me updated twice a day.”
She didn’t bother with a goodbye or a confirmation before hanging up, leaving Dex to glare at the phone.
I’ll update her when I have something to update her with, he thought furiously. He’d had nothing to do but think over the past hours and every minute that passed, he found himself growing angrier with Anatoli.
The Sleepers are defenseless out here, he realized. He knew it was something he had considered when Sabine was leaving but somehow, it hadn’t slapped him in the face until then. With their vigorous martial arts and weapons training, they had seemed indestructible to him, not to mention their hidden abilities.
But if that’s true, what had happened to Sabine? Dex knew he wouldn’t rest until he found out.
Finally, blissfully, darkness fell over the quiet neighborhood. Certain that he wasn’t being watched, he slipped from the car and headed toward the rear of the property and slipped over the fence. A neighbor’s dog barked in protest, causing Dex to pause and wait for an investigation, but when none came, he made his way toward the kitchen window. Unsurprisingly, the house was almost impossible to access, Sabine’s training put to good use. Even so, entry took little effort for Dex and he was inside within minutes.
There was a heavy eeriness in the charming two-story building. Even without turning on a single light, it was clear that no one had been there for a long while. An emptiness struck him deeply, and for the first time in as long as he could remember, Dex felt fear.
Instinctively, he knew that something had happened there, almost precisely where he stood, something terrible.
He turned his dark eyes toward the ground, enacting his penetrating night vision to take a sweep of the room with more clarity. Nothing seemed out of place, the furniture intact, no dishes in the sink. The house was well kept and clean, but for the layer of dust that had settled over everything.
Dex pursed his lips together and closed his eyes, inhaling deeply to catch a scent of someone, anyone, but he knew it was an exercise in futility. Whoever had been there was long gone with Sabine. Only the lingering smell of Sabine’s skin met his nostrils, thrusting him back into a better place and time, one where she was safe in his arms.
Now what? Where do I go from here?
Even though he knew he’d find her toiletries untouched in the bathroom upstairs, he moved to check on them, just in case, and to no surprise, found her toothbrush, make-up, and hairbrush neatly piled on the marble countertop. Even a woman starting over needed a toothbrush.
For a long moment, he pored over the items, touching them like they would bring him closer to her, but he knew he was only wasting time as he fought with the bittersweet nostalgia being so near yet so far from Sabine was washing upon him.
He ground his teeth together so hard, he heard them crack, and he slowly ascended the stairs, his eyes trailing over the house for clues as to who might have taken her and why. Yet he also knew that if Sabine had somehow found trouble, whatever it might be, she wouldn’t have kept evidence of it in the house.
But she would have kept it somewhere.
Excitement surged through him as he suddenly developed a new idea. In training, the Sleepers had been taught that they would truly be on their own unless they were activated. Until then, they were to lead normal, boring lives. There was no way to contact Anatoli or anyone else at the compound. They didn’t even know where the compound was exactly.
“Blend in, blend in, blend in. You are not Sleepers waiting to be activated. You are boring John and Jane Does from rural nowhere, being boring. If you develop any bad habits worse than betting on fantasy football, find another place to do it and make sure you are not followed—ever!”
“What if we find out information about the Cabal?” Sabine had asked.
Dex’s neck tensed to the point of snapping.
Did she go against everything and try to get dirt on the Cabal after she had specifically been told not to?
He knew he wouldn’t be shocked if she had, but it also meant that they wouldn’t leave her alive if they learned what she was up to. Killing a magical being wasn’t as easy as killing a human, but it could be done and the Cabal would go to great lengths to ensure their secrets were kept quiet. Dex had seen firsthand what they were capable of.
They’re terrorists. International and domestic, ruining us from the inside out.
He barely knew where to direct his fire in that moment. There were so many places to choose. He took a deep breath and forced himself to think rationally. If his theory was right and Sabine had been taken by the Cabal, whatever she’d discovered had to be somewhere accessible. He needed to find it.
Again, he moved, opening drawers to search for evidence of another location that Sabine might have kept, but his paper search found nothing.
&n
bsp; His eyes shot toward the computer and his brow raised slightly.
If this is the work of the Cabal, wouldn’t they have taken her computer?
He dismissed his doubts and turned on the laptop. Maybe his theory wasn’t perfect but it was all he had for the moment.
The laptop was password-protected but Dex had a feeling he wouldn’t have to hack into it.
Souvlaki, he typed. A smile touched his face as the home screen appeared. He remembered how badly Sabine had wanted to be placed in Greece.
“The food, the naps… Greece is heaven on Earth,” she had sighed.
Instantly, he pulled up her search history. Again, he was disappointed. She had her settings to automatic removal, or she had recently deleted it herself. He was both proud and frustrated by dead ends.
She was doing everything she was supposed to do, so why was she missing? How did this happen?
He sat back, his mind whirling.
Think, Dex, think, he told himself. He could have a forensics expert look at the computer but that would take far too long. He couldn’t sit around for another day while he had no idea where Sabine had gone.
Suddenly, he sat up, feeling like a fool. Jumping to his feet, he sprinted into the kitchen and opened the door to the garage. His pulse stagnated as he saw Sabine’s blue Audi parked there.
It was all the confirmation he needed that she hadn’t left of her own accord. Hurrying back into the kitchen, he found her keys on the countertop and moved back into the garage to search the vehicle.
To his moderate relief, he found no trace of blood or struggle in the car, but he found nothing else either.
“Dammit!” he swore, dropping his head against the steering wheel. It was one false lead after another. Dex turned his head where his eyes rested on the gleaming black plastic of a GPS navigation system.
He pulled himself back and lunged for the device. It blinked on and he pored through the history, his heart racing as he realized it had not been deleted.
“Work address…home… What is this?” he muttered to himself. He put the location into the map and waited for the coordinates to pop up. The address was less than ten blocks away. Grabbing Sabine’s keys and the GPS, Dex bolted out of the house the same way he’d come. In seconds, he was back in his rental car and zooming toward the undisclosed location.