by I. T. Lucas
One thing was certain, it wouldn’t be as embarrassing as talking with Jackson. His childhood friend was everything that Vlad wanted to be but could never hope to become. Jackson was strikingly handsome, outgoing, and ambitious. He’d never faced the kind of problems that Vlad had to contend with his entire life.
It wasn’t that he begrudged Jackson his good fortune, but the guy could never understand how deeply Wendy’s betrayal had cut him.
Still, he’d meant well, and Vlad was glad of his friendship.
“I’m sorry that I got you into that mess,” the Guardian sighed. “I should have never pressured you into meeting the girl.”
Vlad sat in an armchair facing Bhathian. “I could’ve said no. Besides, I don’t regret it.”
“You don’t?” Bhathian arched one bushy brow.
It definitely felt easier to talk to Bhathian than it had been with Jackson. Maybe it was because Vlad regarded the Guardian as a mentor. Or maybe it was because Bhathian was a father of a grown daughter and a baby son, and despite his youthful looks, it wasn’t hard to imagine him in a paternal role.
“I kissed a girl for the first time. Well, she kissed me, but then something in me snapped, and I took over. It was amazing. I don’t know how I knew what to do, but I wasn’t awkward, and I didn’t fumble.” He smiled. “Wendy said that I was a great kisser.”
“Good for you.” Bhathian puffed out his chest, looking like a proud dad.
Vlad lowered his head and pretended to examine his black-colored fingernails. “But it might have been an act. She had us all fooled. Even Edna.”
“Some things cannot be faked,” Bhathian said.
“True. But that’s neither here nor there. Wendy might have been attracted to me a little bit, but the rest was an act. She pretended to like me, and I wanted to believe that it was true, so I did.”
“It might not have been an act. Did you try to talk to her after the incident?”
Vlad shook his head. “The entire drive to the keep she was crying her eyes out, which was probably an act too, and I was waging war with myself not to be an idiot and forgive her. If I opened my mouth to say anything, that’s what would have come out.”
“What about later, when you got to the keep?”
“I stayed away from Wendy for the same reason. I didn’t trust myself with her. She is too good of an actress.”
“Again, it might not have been an act, and Wendy might have genuine feelings for you. Maybe she had no choice but to make that call, and she was crying because she hated hurting you."
“That’s what Jackson said as well. Vanessa is going to talk to her and find out what’s the deal with her. Maybe Wendy is schizophrenic, and the voices in her head told her to steal my phone and call the program’s director. Or maybe she has a split personality, one who likes me, and the other who is the director’s spy.”
Vlad had said those things mockingly, but secretly he wished they were true. Dealing with a psychological problem was easier because that was a disease, not a malicious act against him.
“Wendy is very young. She might have done that because of misplaced feelings of loyalty. Maybe in her mind the director has become a father figure.”
Vlad frowned. “Did you come up with that, or did you talk with Vanessa?”
Bhathian smiled sheepishly. “That was Eva’s suggestions. But don’t worry, Eva is like a vault. No one is going to hear about it from her.”
“Not even Nathalie?”
“Eva would not whisper a word of it even to our daughter.”
Vlad let out a breath. “I wonder who else knows.”
“Don’t worry about it. And if I were you, I wouldn’t dismiss Eva’s opinion. She has a lot of experience in dealing with humans. She was a private detective for many years, and she is one hell of a smart lady. She is very good at figuring out motives and anticipating moves, and she asked me to tell you not to give up on the girl just yet. She might still be the one for you.”
It was utterly stupid to pin his hopes on Eva’s insight, but Vlad couldn’t help it. Eva had met Wendy and interacted with her. Maybe the former detective’s well-honed intuition had picked up on something no one else had noticed.
15
Kalugal
An entire hour had passed with Kalugal staring at his phone and willing the call from Kian to come in. He was actually looking forward to his cousin yelling and threatening him with retribution because it would prove that he’d been right and that the tether hadn’t been removed.
He hated to think that he’d attacked Jacki and alienated his best friend for no good reason.
Except, proving that the tether had been indeed removed was vital. Until he was convinced of it, Kalugal was de facto paralyzed.
Regrettably, attacking Jacki had been the fastest and surest way to verify it one way or another. If Kian didn’t respond, then the tether was gone, and if he did, then the tether was still there.
Kalugal would apologize to Jacki later, explain his motives, and hope that she could find it in her heart to forgive him.
Rufsur was another story.
Was the guy in love with Jacki? Because save for that, there had been no justification for his gross insubordination.
First of all, he should know Kalugal well enough to suspect that the attack had not been a momentary act of insanity, and that Kalugal would have never done it just because he desired a woman who didn’t reciprocate or who took too long to submit.
“Really, Rufsur. I’m disappointed in you,” he said to the computer screen.
Kalugal didn’t mind Rufsur comforting Jacki, but hearing his lieutenant talking about crossing over to the other side hurt. Rufsur was well aware that the room was bugged and that Kalugal was most likely listening in on their conversation, and the things he was telling Jacki were actually meant for Kalugal’s ears.
The passive-aggressive approach was unbecoming of his second-in-command. As punishment, he should promote Phinas to the position and put Rufsur on bathroom-cleaning duty. That would teach him a lesson.
Kalugal glanced at his phone again, but the device remained stubbornly silent.
Should he initiate the call to Kian instead of waiting for it?
His cousin wasn’t a good actor, so even if he tried to behave as if he knew nothing about the attack on Jacki, he wouldn’t be able to hide his anger.
Except, they had already agreed on the terms for tomorrow’s exchange, and Kalugal needed another excuse for calling again. Perhaps he could ask after the spy’s health? Or maybe he could start negotiating for the visitations that Rufsur had suggested.
The clan had available immortal females, and he had a bunch of available immortal males. Pairing up would be beneficial for both sides.
Except for Phinas and Rufsur, the rest of his men didn’t know about his grand plan for taking over the world, and even if they’d overheard him talking with his lieutenants, they’d assumed it was done jokingly. As far as they were concerned, Kalugal was busy making money and acquiring startups, which was precisely what he was doing. What they didn’t know was that those were just milestones on the roadmap for his long-term plan.
So if any of his men got overly talkative with the clan females, there wasn’t much they could actually tell them that concerned Kalugal.
Yeah, that was a good one. If Kian knew what had happened to Jacki, he would be opposed to arranging meetups between his females and Kalugal’s males.
Placing the call, Kalugal wasn’t surprised that his cousin didn’t answer right away. Since he hadn’t been expecting another call from him that day, he probably didn’t have his immune adviser next to him.
The return call came in a full half an hour later.
“I thought that we were done for today.” Kian’s tone was as gruff as usual, but no more than that.
“So did I, but I forgot to ask how Jin was feeling. Is she all better?”
“She is.”
“I bet she’s asleep. She was exhausted when she arrive
d at my house, and she didn’t sleep much after Julian gave her the shot. We spent a long time talking.”
“So I heard. You compelled her to reveal information.”
“We’ve already covered that. Jacki asked that I check on her friend.”
“Jin is fine. I’ve just spoken with her before returning your call, and she asked me to do the same. How is Jacki doing?”
“She is well, enjoying the selection of books in my library.”
“I hope that you are treating her well.”
“Like an honored guest.”
Kalugal didn’t enjoy lying, but he was very good at it when he needed to.
“Good. Is that all you wanted to talk to me about?”
It seemed that both Jin and Kian were oblivious to what had happened, and it wasn’t because the spy had been asleep. Apparently, she was worried about her friend, which meant that she would have checked on her if she could.
“There is one more thing. Rufsur had a great idea that I wanted to discuss with you.”
“I’m listening.”
“Your clan has immortal females, and I have immortal males. If we could arrange meetings, some might result in happy endings. It’s a great way to solidify the ties between us.”
Kian chuckled. “It’s too early to discuss matchmaking. I still don’t know much about you or your men. Although I have to admit that so far what I’ve learned gives me hope. From what I’ve heard, Rufsur behaved himself, but I can’t say the same about you.”
Kalugal tensed. “What do you mean?”
“The first opportunity you had, you compelled information out of Jin and Julian. I can’t trust you around my people.”
Kalugal let out a relieved breath. “My questions were harmless. I only wanted to learn more about immortal females and how to tell them apart from human women.”
“It was more than that, but I’ll let it go this time. In the future, though, I won’t tolerate you using compulsion on my people for any reason. If you want to know something, just ask, don’t force anyone to tell you more than they are comfortable revealing.”
“Noted. I’ll do my best to behave.”
“Can I have your word?”
“As you’ve just said, it’s too early for that. When I give my word, I don’t do it lightly, and right now, I’m not comfortable making such promises.”
“That’s regrettable, but I understand. Your compulsion ability is your only real advantage. It’s no wonder that you are not willing to give it up yet.”
“I beg to differ, cousin. My real advantage is my mind, and I’m not referring to its paranormal capabilities. Do you play chess, Kian?”
“Rarely. I’m too busy to play games.”
Could’ve fooled him. Every time the two of them engaged in conversation it was game on.
“So am I, but I find that a good game of chess against a worthy opponent sharpens my mind. Exercising my brain is no less important than training to keep my fighting skills up and my body in peak condition. We should meet up and play. It has been a long time since I’ve sat across from a champion player.”
“I’m far from that, cousin. But my friend Turner would gladly accept your challenge.”
“Ah, the brilliant strategist I’ve heard about. It would be my pleasure.”
When the call ended, Kalugal leaned back in his chair and let out a breath.
The tether was gone. He was almost certain of that. It was possible that Jin hadn’t been following it to Jacki or him during the incident, but Jacki had spent the last hour crying her heart out to Rufsur, which expanded the window of time available to Jin.
Now all that was left to do was damage control.
Kalugal had to apologize to Jacki and explain why he had acted so badly. Hopefully, she would forgive him. Maybe not right away, but with some serious groveling on his part, she eventually might.
Except, he sucked at apologizing, and he doubted there was an online crash course that he could take on the subject.
His natural charm would have to do.
16
Jacki
“I need to go.” Rufsur returned his phone to his pocket after reading a message that she guessed was from Kalugal.
Jacki looked up at him. “Your jerk of a boss is demanding your presence?”
“I’ve been here for over an hour.” He smiled. “It was my pleasure, but I’m getting paid to work, not to enjoy myself talking to a pretty lady.” He pushed to his feet and offered her his hand.
“Thank you.” She shook it.
“Anytime. If you need anything, just let Shamash know, and he’ll call me. He’s outside in the corridor.”
Jacki grimaced. “So much for Kalugal’s promise to give me a room in the house.”
“I’ll talk to him about that.”
“Don’t bother. It’s only for one more night. Whoever is in charge of laundry will thank me for not having to wash two sets of bedding.”
“I’ll come again when I can.” He opened the door.
“I’d like that.”
Jacki meant it, but given the happy grin on Rufsur’s face, she shouldn’t have said it.
He was a nice guy, and if he were human, she might have considered dating him. Although that would have been wrong too.
The truth was that she wasn’t attracted to Rufsur. She was attracted to his asshole of a boss.
Way to go, Jacki.
Talk about falling for the wrong guy.
The absolutely worst possible guy. Not only was Kalugal a quasi-rapist, but he was also arrogant, conceited, and immortal. He was at the very top of the food chain, while she was two or three levels below with the rest of the anonymous human masses.
When there was a tentative knock on the door, she assumed it was Shamash. It was lunchtime, and even though she wasn’t hungry, eating would be better than staring at the walls and thinking about Kalugal.
“Come in.”
Speak of the devil. Kalugal entered the room with a bottle of wine in one hand, two glasses in the other, and a sheepish smile on his face.
The nerve of the guy.
“Get out of here.” She pointed at the door.
“I brought a peace offering.” He lifted the bottle. “I was saving it for a special occasion, but I decided to sweeten my apology with a superb wine.”
Crossing her arms over her chest, Jacki jutted her chin out. “I don’t want your wine, or your apology, or your company. I have nothing to say to you, nor do I want to hear anything you have to say in your defense because there is nothing that can justify your behavior. Please get out.”
Ignoring her request, he sat on the couch next to her, but not too close.
“I’ll get straight to the point. I had to make sure that the tether was off.” He put the wine and the glasses on the table. “And the only way to test it was to do something extreme enough to provoke a response from Kian. I didn’t enjoy it. In fact, I hated every moment of it, and I’m so sorry that I had to use you in such a despicable way. I’m here to apologize and do whatever it takes to make it up to you.”
Well, that explained it.
At least she hadn’t been wrong in her assessment of Kalugal. After what he had done, Jacki had started to doubt her ability to tell the rapists from the garden-variety jerks.
But that didn’t mean that she was going to forgive him, especially not after he’d added insult to injury with his comment about hating every moment of it. Was she so repulsive that he’d hated kissing her?
He arched a brow. “Nothing to say?”
“Oh, I have plenty to say. But I’m too much of a lady to use such language.”
He smiled and beckoned with his hand. “Let me have it. And if you want, you can punch me in the face like Rufsur did. I’ll turn the other cheek.”
Damn him. Why did he have to be so charming?
“You are a conceited jerk, a manipulator, and a liar, and I don’t trust you not to try to rape me again.”
As she’d expected, her jibe w
orked, and Kalugal cringed.
“I swear that I will never again touch you without your permission.”
After he’d admitted to hating touching her, Jacki believed him. But if he hadn’t been attracted to her, then why had he decided to test the tether that way? Surely there were other ways to do it.
“How did you even come up with the idea to attack me? Couldn’t you have done something else to enrage Kian?”
He pushed his hair back with his fingers. “It was Jin’s comment that gave me the idea. You were both out in the corridor, and she said that she was afraid to remove the tether because my men or I might make improper advances, and without the tether, she wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.”
Jacki snorted. “You forgot to mention her comment about immortals being notoriously horny.”
He chuckled. “That’s true. At least for the males. I don’t know much about immortal females.”
She wondered how that was possible. Maybe Kalugal had been a virgin when he’d escaped with his men? But then he could have asked them. Some were much older than him and must have had sex with the immortal females of their community before leaving.
The other explanation could have been that they hadn’t been allowed access to the immortal females. Perhaps extramarital sex wasn't allowed. That made sense. A lot of patriarchal societies had very strict rules about those things. The males were allowed to sleep around with so-called loose women, but the females were expected to be virgins on their wedding nights.
“It makes sense for the females to have a libido to match the males, but I’m just a human, so don’t expect me to lust after you.”
Liar.
His attack had killed her desire for him, but his apology had rekindled it. Except, Kalugal had also said that he’d hated every moment of the kiss, which meant that he wasn’t even attracted to her, and it had all been an act.
He smirked. “If you change your mind, you are welcome to lust after me anytime you want. But the ball is entirely in your court. You will have to initiate because I’m not going to lay a finger on you unless you do that first, and even then, I’m going to ask your permission.”