by I. T. Lucas
“He is not picking up.” He disconnected the call.
“Give him a moment. Maybe he’s in the restroom and is just zipping up.”
Arwel shook his head. “I really don’t want you thinking about Kian and zippers in the same context.”
She chuckled. “Sorry. I just thought that if he was on the line with someone else, he could have paused, switched over to you, and told you to wait. But since he didn’t do that, I figured he couldn’t get to the phone.”
As his phone started ringing, he arched a brow. “Maybe you were right.” Planting a quick kiss on the tip of her cute nose, he answered. “Hi, Kian. Thanks for calling back.”
“I was on another call.”
Jin shrugged and made the zipping motion.
He mouthed, naughty girl. “I have Jin here with me. Do you mind if I put you on speaker? I’m calling on her behalf, and the door to her room is closed, so the others can’t hear us. We can talk freely
“Go ahead.”
She leaned into the phone even though it wasn’t necessary. “Hi, Kian. How is your day going?”
“Very well. And yours?” He sounded amused.
“I’m ready to go after Kalugal.”
“Don’t you need to rest a little longer?”
“She is impatient to start her transition,” Arwel interjected before Jin had a chance to blurt something about the damn condoms.
The girl really had no filter.
“I see,” Kian said. “Can you be ready to leave for the Bay Area by Thursday?”
Arwel frowned. He hadn’t expected Kian to be ready so soon. “That’s only two days from now. Are there any new developments that I’m not aware of?”
“I spoke to Vivian and Magnus earlier, and they told me about a house for lease down the street from Kalugal’s mansion. We are renting it starting Thursday. The place is fully furnished, so you can move right in. Since Vivian and Magnus have been pretending to look for a property in the area and Kalugal’s men have investigated them already, they are going to be the official renters.”
“How many Guardians are you sending with us?”
Arwel took it for granted that he was going, and if Kian objected, they would have a problem, because he wasn’t letting Jin go without him.
“Kri and Michael are already there. I’m thinking of sending four more, but that might be overkill. You, Magnus, and Kri, that’s already three, and you can count Michael as half.”
“What’s half a Guardian?” Jin asked.
“Michael is still in training, but he is very good,” Arwel explained.
Jin pursed her lips. “Then that’s more than enough. You don’t need to send any more people to guard me. Once you locate Kalugal and I get to him, the whole thing is going to be over in five minutes.”
“The problem is that none of the men can go in with you because Kalugal would sense them. They can only guard the exits. If there is more than one, they will need to split up. Also, he is probably not going to be alone. A guy like him doesn’t leave the house without a bodyguard or two. I need to add at least two more Guardians to your team.”
“You are the boss.” She shrugged. “What about Jacki? Is she coming with me?”
“Yes.”
Jin pumped her fist in the air. “Awesome.” But then her expression turned serious again. “What about Richard and Wendy? They will feel abandoned here. Especially since it could take a long time until Kalugal is spotted somewhere nearby and in a place that I’ll have access to him.”
“I’m sorry, but you can’t take them with you. They would be a liability.”
“Not really. Wendy is an empath, and Richard is a touch telepath, and they are both human. They can be part of my backup.”
“Does either of them have military training?”
“Only what we were taught in the program. We had firearm training and some hand-to-hand fighting. But that wasn’t much. Still, that’s all Jacki and I have to work with.”
“Let me think about it, but it’s probably a no. Jacki is an immune, so she is too valuable not to be uses in this situation, but the other two are basically untrained civilians.”
Jin nodded. “I understand. I don’t like it, but I get it.”
“Do you still think you can be ready by Thursday?” Kian asked.
“Nothing has changed about that. I’m ready to be done with this.”
“Did you have a chance to tether your friends?”
Jin grimaced. “Not yet.”
“Make sure to do it before Thursday.”
“I really don’t think it’s a good idea. It’s not like I can follow the tethers all at once. I can do it only one at a time, and when I have several connected to me, it takes a lot of concentration.”
“I understand. Like everything else, there is a learning curve, and I’m sure that with practice it will become easier for you to handle.”
“Maybe. But it’s still uncomfortable. Morally, I mean. I would hate it if anyone did it to me.”
“Think of it as a temporary measure.”
“Do I have a choice?”
“I’m afraid not.”
12
Jin
Arwel ended the call and dropped the phone on the couch again. “So, where were we?” He palmed the back of her neck and pulled her in for a kiss.
Things were just starting to heat up again when Jin’s phone rang.
Arwel groaned. “What now?”
“It’s Mey’s ringtone.” Jin reached into her back pocket. “What’s up?”
“Dinner. We are all heading to the kitchen. Kian’s butler delivered groceries, and Ingrid brought four extra-large pizzas and a cake for dessert. I say we make a salad to go with the pizzas and leave the cooking for tomorrow.”
“Aren’t we lucky. I totally forgot that we planned on making dinner for everyone tonight. We need to thank Ingrid for saving us the trouble.”
“I already did. So, are you two coming?”
Jin chuckled. “Yeah, in a bit.” They were about to, but Mey’s phone call had ruined those plans.
“Don’t wait too long. The pizzas are getting cold.”
Arwel groaned. “I knew that we should have waited with calling Kian.”
“It actually worked out better this way. We can eat dinner with everyone, tell them the sad news about us leaving, and then go back and make love for as long as we want. No interruptions.”
“Let’s get it over with, then.” Arwel lifted her off his lap and then adjusted himself. “I’m not going to be comfortable.”
“Sweet torture.” She winked at him. “I’ll make it up to you.”
When they got to the kitchen, Mey waved Jin over. “Can you grate the Parmesan? I’m almost done.”
“Sure thing.” Jin grabbed the thick chunk of cheese and went to work. “Just like old times in Mom’s kitchen. It makes me feel nostalgic.”
Mey nodded. “I miss Mom and Dad. Maybe after this thing with Kalugal is over, we can go visit them?”
“That’s an awesome idea. Except, you forget that I’m a wanted woman. How am I going to fly over there?”
Mey stole a quick glance around to make sure none of the humans were within earshot. “The clan can arrange for fake documents. And if, after you tether Kalugal, Kian feels generous, he might let us use the private jet.” She leaned closer to Jin’s ear. “Naturally, we won’t go until you transition, and then we can take Arwel and Yamanu with us.” She smiled. “We can introduce our fiancés to our parents.”
“Arwel is not my fiancé. And besides, they are not going to be happy with our choices.” Jin leaned closer. “Our guys are pagans who believe in Fates. Mom and Dad are going to have a conniption over us not marrying Jewish boys.”
Mey grimaced. “Do you think there is a chance that they will agree to convert?”
Jin arched a brow. “You are an optimist, aren’t you?”
From over at the center island, Yamanu cleared his throat. “Not going to happen.”
; Jin waved a hand. “That’s what I thought.”
“I think that’s enough Parmesan.” Mey put a hand on Jin’s.
There wasn’t much left of the big hunk of cheese. Without paying attention, she’d grated a mountain.
Mey took a plate and emptied half of it into her salad, tossed it, and carried it to the kitchen island that served as their dining table. “Enjoy, everyone.”
Sitting between Mey and Arwel, Jin munched on a slice of pizza while watching Ingrid flirting with Richard.
He seemed to be enjoying the attention, and Jin wondered whether the two of them had already had sex. She hoped so, and not only because she felt guilty for moving on so quickly. If things got serious between Ingrid and Richard, he would be too busy to feel abandoned when Jin and Jacki left for San Francisco.
But that still left Wendy.
Right now, she was talking with Jacki, and the two were laughing about something, but Jacki was leaving too.
Then another thought occurred to her. Mey and Yamanu were staying at the keep only because of her. As soon as she left, they would probably go back to their house in the village.
Damn, she hadn’t thought things through. Maybe she should have waited another week?
“You are atypically quiet,” Mey said. “What gives?”
“Arwel and I spoke with Kian, and I told him that I’m ready to go after Kalugal. Naturally, he was happy to hear that, and he told us to be ready by Thursday. Jacki is coming with us too, but I didn’t tell her yet. I’m worried about leaving Wendy and Richard alone here. You and Yamanu are probably not going to hang around once I’m gone, right?”
Mey glanced at her guy, who shrugged.
“We can stay a little longer, but eventually, everyone has to move on. Richard seems to be in good hands. So that leaves only Wendy.”
“I can introduce her to a very nice young man,” Yamanu said.
Mey lifted a brow. “Who do you have in mind?”
“You don’t know him, but he is Wendy’s age.”
The girl looked their way. “Are you talking about me?”
Jin nodded. “Yamanu wants to introduce you to a guy he knows.”
Wendy blushed. “I don’t want a boyfriend.”
“Who said anything about a boyfriend? I was thinking about a boy who can be your friend. Vlad is one of the nicest guys I know, he is your age, and he could really use a friend as well.”
“Why?” Wendy narrowed her eyes. “What’s wrong with him?”
Yamanu shrugged. “He’s a bit odd, but he is also very sweet. He attends college in the area, so it’s not a problem for him to stop by.”
Wendy seemed to warm to the idea. “What’s his talent? Is he part of your organization?”
“He’s a shrouder like me. Not nearly as powerful, but then he is still young. He might become stronger when he gets older.”
That sounded like an awesome solution, provided that the kid wasn’t some kind of a freak. For the match to work, Wendy needed to be attracted to him, and if he was odd-looking, or behaved strangely, that might not happen.
Before Yamanu made a big mistake and exposed the poor kid to unnecessary heartache, she needed to ask Arwel what he knew about Vlad.
13
Arwel
When Jin and he returned to her room, Arwel wanted to pick up where they’d left off before Mey had called, but Jin seemed troubled.
“What do you know about that kid?” she asked.
Arwel pulled her into his arms. “I really don’t want to talk about Vlad now.” He picked her up and carried her to the bed.
“Just tell me if he is really as nice as Yamanu claims. I worry about Wendy, and Yamanu also said that the kid was odd. In what way? And why is he lonely? Is he socially awkward? And is he good at keeping secrets? Because he will have to keep his immortality from Wendy.”
Arwel put a finger on Jin’s lips. “Slow down. I can only answer one question at a time. I don’t know Vlad well, but those who do say that he has a heart of gold. The thing is, the kid looks like a vampire, and not the sexy Hollywood kind. For some reason, his fangs are more pronounced in their resting state than those of other immortal males. On top of that, each of his eyes is a different color, he is about six feet four inches tall and skinny like a twig.”
Jin’s eyes softened. “Poor kid. College must be hell for him. How does he manage?”
“He wears black clothes, covers one eye with his bangs, and fronts the Goth rocker image. People assume that the teeth are glue-on, and the different colored eyes are contact lenses.”
“Is he a rocker?”
Arwel nodded. “He plays bass guitar and has a good voice. But right now, he is missing the rest of his band. Jackson, who is the lead guitarist and vocalist, is busy running his sandwich and pastry empire, and Gordon, that’s the drummer, is away at college. So that’s why he is lonely.”
Seeming satisfied with his answer, Jin smiled. “Two lonely hearts. It could work. But I thought that the plan was to bring in Guardians for the girls to choose from.”
“It will have to wait. Jacki is coming with us to the Bay Area, and after what Edna said about Wendy, I don’t think the girl is ready for a Guardian. None of them are young lads, and I think that Yamanu made a great choice with Vlad. I hope that the kid is not too shy to befriend a girl.”
Jin lifted a brow. “Is he a virgin?”
“I don’t know for sure, but I suspect that he is. What about Wendy?”
“I don’t think so.”
“She blushed when you told her about Yamanu’s idea.”
“So what? A lot of people blush when they are embarrassed. It doesn’t mean a thing.” Jin sighed. “I just want all three of them to move on, so they can leave this freaking underground and join the living. But I’m still trying to figure out how it’s going to work. I understand that inducing Richard is not a problem because he only needs to fight one of your men. Maybe this can be done while Jacki is away? If it doesn’t work, his memory of it can be erased, right? But if she is here, we will need to isolate Richard until he either transitions and moves into the village, or gets his memories wiped and you give him a new identity and send him somewhere safe.”
“It’s not that simple. If he bonds with an immortal female, we can be pretty sure of his loyalty. Without it, he could betray us even if he turns immortal. And after he turns, we won’t be able to thrall him at all. That only affects humans.”
“Then I really hope Richard and Ingrid fall in love. But if they don’t, Kian should send more females down here. They can pretend to volunteer giving classes on this or that like Dalhu did.”
“That’s smart. We should suggest it to him. But first, let’s give Ingrid a chance. She called dibs on Richard, and she’d be majorly pissed if he slipped through her fingers.”
“True.” Jin plopped back on the bed. “I wish that by the time we come back, Wendy and that kid are in love, and so are Richard and Ingrid. That would leave only Jacki to take care of.”
Lying on his side next to Jin, Arwel brushed his fingertips over her cheek. “You are such a mother hen. You want to make sure that everyone is okay before you allow yourself to be happy. They are all adults, Jin, and they knew what they were getting into when they asked to join the escape. You are not responsible for them.”
She threw her arm over her eyes. “I can’t help it. That’s how I’m wired.”
He lifted her arm and dipped his head to kiss her lips. “For tonight, none of that matters. It’s just you and me. Can you do that? Can you clear your mind of all the noise and concentrate on us?”
A smile tugging on one corner of her mouth, Jin shifted to her side. “I know how you can help me do that. When you make love to me, I can’t think of anything at all, especially when I’m orgasming.”
“I can definitely help with that.”
14
Jin
All during breakfast, Jin tried to come up with something to say to her friends other than Kian told me to
do it. To claim that tethering them was for their own safety would insult their intelligence. They were in an underground facility that no outsiders had access to, and they couldn’t leave even if they wanted to because the elevator was programmed to prevent them from reaching the exit.
Tethering them was purely a spying device and a terrible invasion of privacy.
When she and Arwel returned to her room, he pulled her into his arms. “You were frowning all throughout breakfast, and you’ve barely said a word to me. Did I do something wrong last night?”
She chuckled. “You should know better than that. I lost count of the number of times I climaxed.” She kissed him lightly. “You were amazing.”
“So what’s the bad mood about?”
“I don’t want to tether my friends.” Jin pulled out of his arms and walked over to the mini fridge. “Why can’t Kian put trackers on them instead?” She took out a bottle of water.
Taking it out of her hand, he unscrewed the top as if she couldn’t handle the task. Usually she didn’t mind his over-the-top chivalry, but this morning it annoyed her.
Jin shook her head. She’d known the guy for a total of four days, and she was talking about usual. Except, it felt as if they’d been together for much longer. Maybe it had to do with how intense those four days had been.
Since the first time she’d seen Arwel, they hadn’t been apart for more than an hour.
Or maybe it felt right simply because they belonged together, and that was why it seemed so natural, even easy, to be with Arwel. Two pieces of a whole finding each other and sticking together to form something better and stronger than the sum of its parts.
Talk about getting carried away.
“You’ve tethered them before.” Arwel handed her the bottle. “So they shouldn’t make too big of a fuss over it.”
Jin rolled her eyes. He hadn’t seen the resentful looks she’d gotten after tethering the other trainees. And that had been done only as an experiment, not because the director had wanted her to keep tabs on them.