Sweet Firecracker

by Nikki Bolvair

  Before I even made it back onto the road, a black truck barreled past, not realizing I was in the car, now.

  I glanced through its window as it passed and saw an enraged man. It could have been Garret, but I wasn’t sure. Hopefully, a different vehicle would confuse them long enough for me to put distance between us. For all they knew, I was in the store. Until they realized they couldn’t sense me any longer…

  Frowning, I looked at the speedometer. I better keep up my speed. The horrible car only went up to a hundred and twenty mph. Not nearly fast enough.

  “Well, it won’t matter,” I whispered to the car. “Because you and I won’t be together for very long.”

  I kept up my fast pace until the crazy connection faded away, then kept going. If the driver of the first black truck that tried to run me off the road earlier was anything like the second one I just lost, then Trisha might already be screwed. I needed to go faster.

  I reached the most recent location of Trisha’s signature. A library. I parked in the back of the building and walked around the side toward the front, hoping to get to her in time. When I turned the corner, I quickly pulled back, pressing my front against the side of the building. My heart thudded in my ears as I breathed out, trying to calm down.

  They already had her.

  I turned against the side of the building and peeked out once more. I had to do something. Trisha looked so lost between the two men, but she had a spine of steel spine. She wasn’t giving up. And I wasn’t, either.

  Intent on saving her, I reached for the gun behind my back, but I didn’t get that far.

  A hand slammed between my shoulder blades, pressing me to the brick wall, then grabbed my arm, twisting it behind me while another hand pressed the artery in my neck. Struggling to get free with only a few moments before I passed out, I used my free hand to reach back to find that sensitive package all guys worship. Grabbing it, I yanked.

  “Shit,” the harsh whisper came out from the guy behind me as I struck gold.

  I moved my head, trying to get the pressure off my neck when another guy turned my head. Focusing on him, I froze as I recognized the face of another person I never expected to see again.

  “Sleep,” Seth commanded gruffly as his eyes stared into mine, stone cold.

  My jaw slackened. Were they all together? Then dots filled my vision as I blacked out.

  Gotcha

  Melissa

  When I woke up, I quickly tested to check if I was bound or not. I wasn’t. Opening my eyes, I looked around and was shocked to find myself in the very place I tried to avoid. My past.

  Though the room was the same, things in the space were not. Where there had been two twin beds before, now one remained. I stretched my arms out, testing the width of the bed, and came to the conclusion it was a queen-size. My attentions shot across the room to the door I had walked through so long ago as a scared and confused child. It was closed for now.

  Next, I glanced at the window I had gone through each night to escape the boys’ ridiculous pranks. Could I do the same now? I sat up, then swung my feet over the edge of the bed to stand and investigate. Taking a closer look, I realized it was now single paned and bullet proof, if the thickness of it didn’t give it away, and no longer functional. So I was, technically, a prisoner.

  Putting a hand to the window pane, I stared outside and asked myself the insane question that burned through my mind. Why? Why bring me back here?

  The question made me uncomfortable. Had me off kilter.

  And along with those thoughts came the return of that damn buzzing.

  I jumped into action, but didn’t bother to run. I wanted to know what the hell was going on. Instead, I situated myself behind the door for a surprise attack for whoever walked through the door. I knew one of them was coming. I could feel them.

  The door creaked open, and a hand darted behind it, as if they knew where I was, and took ahold of my arm. I kicked the door, trying to shut it. An umfp came from the man. But he didn’t let go of my arm as he pushed back, squishing me to the wall.

  Maybe… this wasn’t the best idea I’ve had.

  And as quickly as it happened, the door whooshed back, and I caught a quick glance of the man before I threw my punch.

  He blocked, twisted me around, and slammed me against the wall face first. Shit, I was totally off my game.

  “Melissa,” his voice rumbled out as he held me tight, my arms crossed at my chest. I was pissed by how he knew where I was but still curious enough to not struggle… Much.

  “Let go,” I demanded, standing still, not moving an inch. The crazy sensation I felt, the pulse of energy, wasn’t just coming from him. It came from both of us, and it scared me. What was wrong with him? With me?

  “Not yet, sweetness. Not until I know you’re not going to hurt yourself.”

  I snorted. “I’m not going to hurt myself, but I will hurt you.”

  “Uспорченный, Sweetheart. Uспорченный.”

  My heart stopped, then started to race like crazy. “Which one are you?”

  “Does it matter?”

  “Yes, it does,” I said coolly. “And give me my friend back.”

  I felt his head dip down, and I struggled as his lips met my ear. “No. Why were you there, Melissa? At the compound? Are you both traitors or agents? It seems the last time we spoke, you were convinced your dad was a spy. Is that still the case?” His warm breath sent chills down my spine, and I had to steel myself from a shiver.

  “It depends. Which side are you on?” I asked, unsure.

  He flipped me around and pushed me back against the wall, caging me in. My head tapped against the hard surface as I stared into the deep, blue eyes of Dallon Hemlock. The once soft lines of his younger face had grown hard and chiseled, making him even more handsome, surprisingly so. Once a scrawny nerdling of a kid, older Dallon now hovered over my average frame with bulk and mass; he certainly grew up.

  His face leaned into my neck, and my heart raced. He breathed deep then let out a groan, and I froze. What was he doing? My body pulsed with his closeness, like a thousand watts of electricity caressing my skin. What the fuck was happening to me?

  After a second longer, I tried to shove him away, but damn he was strong.

  “Just calm down,” he said into my neck.

  “Calm down?” I growled. “You do know that in this situation, calming down is the last thing on my mind?”

  He pulled back. “Well, aren’t you a fiery one.”

  I shoved again. “That all you got, Dallon?”

  Dallon’s eyes flashed with amusement at my challenge. It was hard to ignore the near tangible sparks between us.

  “Cayenne Spice,” he murmured as he caught my hands, pushed them above my head, and held them there.

  Damn it. He hadn’t forgotten. I let him control me because I wasn’t in my right mind. Too many memories. At least, that’s what I told myself. I let his body press even closer as I fired my questions in a last attempt to put distance between us and this messed up situation.

  “What’s going on, Dallon?” I shifted to ease away from him the best I could by sliding a small bit to the right. “What is this thing between the two of us? Why am I here? Where is my friend?”

  It worked like a knife cutting through the air. Dallon eased his body away from mine, and the sexual electricity that caressed my skin dropped down to a simmer. He let go of my arms, and I rubbed my wrists more from instinct than from hurt.

  “One question at a time,” he suggested as he braced his hands against the wall on either side of my head, holding his body away from mine but his face close. He was careful not to touch me more than he needed to now that he understood something was wrong with us. “First question,” he barked.

  My eyes narrowed. “Where’s Trisha?”

  He cocked his head to the side. “She the other agent with you?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Then, I don’t know where she is.”

&nb
sp; I tensed, and my lips pursed. “That’s an asshole move.”

  “I don’t know where she is, but I can find out if you’re honest with me.”

  I reached out for another shove, but thought better of it and folded my arms. “Fine. She might be.”

  He grinned and gave me a slight nod. “Good, we’re making progress. Next question.”

  “Who do you work for?”

  He glanced away to the left. That was a sign of remembering. After a second, he turned back. “I missed you.”

  Before I could stop it, a lone finger shot out and poked his chest, causing the buzzing sensation to return. “Don’t deflect. Tell me.”

  One of his hands lifted from the wall to rub the spot. “Military.”

  At that point, footfalls sounded on the stairs down the hall, and another face I knew peeked around the door Dallon and I stood behind.

  “Aaron?” I pushed Dallon, and he backed up, letting me go so I could greet Aaron.

  Aaron’s strong arms surrounded me and squeezed. It was the same strong and firm grip I remembered. The troublesome three held a special place in my heart. I drew back and smacked his arm. “How are you? Are the others here?”

  “I’m good. The others are around.” His eyes shifted to Dallon’s before resting back on mine. “In fact, Seth wants to know if you’re going to kill him for getting the drop on you.”

  A grin crept up as I shook my head. “No. I deserved it. I was too focused on Trisha. My fault. But I do want to know where she is and who took her and why your team was there at Nero Kovach’s compound. It seems unusual for the military to be involved in stateside crimes.”

  The two of them shifted and shared a glance before Aaron spoke. “Why don’t we go down to the kitchen? The guys are waiting.”

  I glanced out the window and gaze at the same sunset bleeding into the skyline that I had left all those years ago. My stomach ached at the memory of when I left this place. I shook my head and realized it was indeed evening.

  Shifting my gaze back to the guys, I asked, “Is Emma still around? Is she here?”

  Dallon curved an arm around my shoulders and guided me to the hall. “She’s in a nursing home, now.”

  “Why?” Emma was old when I first met her, but she’d be in her late sixties now. Surely too young to be in a nursing home.

  “Early onset of Alzheimer’s. She happy there,” Aaron answered.

  Downstairs, as we made our way toward the kitchen, we passed by the old coat closet I once hid in, and memories flooded back for a brief moment. I shook myself out of my stupor when I felt another pulse or beat of sensation. It didn’t come from Dallon but from someone else. Concerned, I followed the guys the rest of the way into the kitchen where I found Garrett, Seth, and Weston. One of them was causing the same reaction as Dallon. Each of them held their own in the hot department. Muscles and short haircuts, cautious gazes to boot.

  I smirked and tried to ease the tension by sarcastically stating, “Well, well, well. It’s like a family reunion.”

  Weston, the closest one to me, snorted and roughly tugged me into his arms. “Smartass.”

  I pulled away to give him my own comeback only to be shoved into Garrett’s death grip hug. “She does like to spice things up with sarcasm.”

  I curved my arms around Garrett’s waist as his arms circled me, and his cheek rubbed against the side of my head with tenderness. His touch was like a live wire, except without the pain. The same sensation I had with Dallon but tenfold. My body trembled. I was in trouble.

  “Melissa,” Garrett breathed, his hands gripping my sides as my arms loosened around him. “Missed you.”

  There was utter silence as we stayed that way a second too long.

  “Haven here, too?” I deflected, not knowing how to respond to Garrett.

  “Nope.”

  “Are you going to let her go?” Aaron joked from behind us. I went to draw away, but Garrett’s arms tightened.

  “Yeah, Garrett, let her go,” Seth mused as he watched us.

  I unwound my arms from Garrett’s waist and pushed against his chest forcefully until he let me go with reluctance. I moved over to Seth and smirked, thinking of the past. “Scared of a little girl?”

  He shrugged and dished it back. “We’re now trained to handle you.”

  He tugged me into his arms for a hug. I reciprocated the gesture, then pulled back and punched him in the stomach.

  He moved away from me and rubbed the spot. “Ouch.”

  The guys chuckled as Weston hit his shoulder. “Don’t be a wuss.”

  I grinned, dusting off my shoulders cockily. “I’m trained, too.”

  Seth shook his head. “I guess I deserved that.”

  Glancing to the wall behind him, an item caught my eye, and I grinned. “You’ve changed the whole house, but you kept the rotary phone?”

  Aaron chuckled. “Yeah, it never rings anyway.”

  Dallon cleared his throat. “Let’s take a seat and figure out what’s going on.”

  The rest of us murmured agreements and sat at the same table I had eaten at with them all those years ago.

  Dallon and Garrett took up residence beside me as the troublesome three sat across from us. I put my game face on and demanded answers. “Okay, where the hell is Trisha?”

  Weston sat back and seemed guilty, which caused my hackles to raise.

  “Look, I didn’t know who she was—”

  “What did you do to her?” I growled as I stood up to leave. I love these guys, but if they did anything to Trisha…

  Garrett put a hand on my arm, and I immediately relaxed. Weird.

  “Sit down,” Garrett commanded, and I sat, confused at what just happened.

  Weston stared me straight in the eyes. “Look, all we wanted was information. We didn’t know if you two were on the same side or not. We had Kellan—”

  “Who the fuck is Kellan?” I demanded.

  “He’s not going to like her language,” Seth broke in as the others grunted.

  “I don’t fucking care if he likes my language or not, what does he have to do with Trisha?”

  “Settle down.” Garrett soothed with a light touch on my arm. “He’s a member of our team and has unique abilities. We came to the conclusion you both were neutrals in our suspicions, then something happened to her and our other teammates.”

  Maybe it was something similar to what was happening with me, Dallon, and Garrett. I brushed off that thought and asked, “Who are they? Your other teammates?”

  “You don’t know them,” Dallon spoke up.

  “Tristan and Triton,” Weston explained. “We don’t know what’s going on yet, but she’s safe. We’re not going to hurt her.”

  “You see, Melissa,” Seth eased in, “we’re not exactly normal, anymore. All of our team members signed up for a project called The Warrior Program. We let the government test out an experimental drug on us called the H-15 serum.”

  I shook Garrett’s hand off of me. “What the fuck?”

  “Just listen,” Weston barked. “It’s not as bad as it seems.”

  I tensed, remembering the vial Myter had taken, and realized this might be true. “Fine.” I waved a hand at Seth. “Go ahead. Finish about how unnatural you are.”

  Seth’s mouth kicked up, and he went on. “The serum increased our vision, speed, and strength, among other things. One of the benefits is health. Triton and Tristan were the first to take the drug, and the rest of us followed. We’re a team. We stick together.”

  “This drug, serum, whatever, it can heal?” I connected the dots of why Myter would risk everything for it.

  Garrett shifted beside me, and I turned my gaze to him. “You’re now different, but what does that have to do with the compound and Trisha?”

  “We know you’re FBI,” Weston stated. “And that Myter is a traitor.”

  I kept my expression neutral and answered, being careful at what I said, “Your general has a right to be cautious,” I explained.
“Tell me why you suspect him of treason, and I’ll let you in on what I know.”

  Dallon sighed and placed his arm around my shoulders. “We were sent under orders to prevent an exchange from happening. Nero had some connection with our facility, which we were unaware of, and gained access to the Warrior serum. We believe he gained this serum for Myter and that Myter thinks the vial contains a cure for his dying daughter.”

  Aaron tilted his head. “So we laid our cards out on the table. What info do you have for us?”

  I glared at him. He knew I needed to get clearance to talk. He most likely got his while I was unconscious. “Have a secure phone I can use?”

  Seth reached into his pocket, pulled out a bulky phone, and slid it across the table to me. “Here, call ’em.”

  I caught it before it fell into my lap. “Just like that?” They all stayed silent. “Do you have a quiet room?”

  They all grunted as if I should know better. It was an unusual thing to ask for in this old farmhouse, but if they used it as a safe house, it should have one.

  Beside me, Garrett scooted out from the table. “I’ll show her where it is.”

  I got up and followed him out of the kitchen and toward the living room, but he stopped in the hallway at the closet door I hid in all those years ago. Garrett pressed his fingers against the doorjamb, and the door slid soundlessly open.

  “What the hell?”

  He laughed as I leaned in closer to the right of the door frame where he pressed his fingers. I shivered at the contact of his shoulder against mine, which caused the connection between us to crackle at a lively pace. He stiffened. “It’s a security panel on the side that blends into the frame.” Then he drawled, “The FBI doesn’t have toys like this?”

  I flipped him the bird—which made him chuckle—and raised my eyebrows at the new addition of steps that went down into a slightly larger space below the house. A small safe-room. I turned to Garrett, who came down into the space with me. He leaned against the gray wall at the bottom of the steps, his piercing blue gaze pinned on me. He seemed comfortable with this…thing between me, him, and Dallon. My gaze narrowed on him. He knew something, but wasn’t saying.