Viking Sensitivity
By
Gretchen S. B.
Copyright © 2015 by Gretchen S. B.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
Acknowledgments
I want to start by thanking everyone who read Lady of the Dead, the first Night World book. I hope you enjoy this one just as much.
I also want to thank everyone who helped me by cheering me on this last year when life got too hectic to write. Thank you for helping me keep my dream alive. I can't express how much your support has meant.
I want to thank my editor She Gaeta, for making this story ready for public consumption.
Thank you to Talina Perkins at Bookin it Designs for giving me yet another wonderful cover to show the world.
Last of all, but not least, is “He who must not be tagged.” Or as he is now known "The Hubster". Although he hates to be mentioned, he deserves credit for all his support and all the dinners he had to bring home because I was so busy writing I forgot to cook.
Chapter 1
Viking couldn't believe he made the deal with Lucia to babysit a church group. He wasn't sure which was stranger; that he agreed to help, or that Lucia belonged to a church group. So far everything had been pretty dull.
At first he had not been sure why she wanted him there. When he gained the details and he considered the location he could understand why Lucia would be wary. This particular campsite had been the scene of several thefts and armed attacks over the last couple months. Having extra security made sense. Apparently the site they should have been at was double booked so their reservation was bumped. This was the only place open.
During the first night not a lot happened. Women came and went from the main hall going to their small group cabins. He was sure to stay out of sight as he patrolled the perimeter in the various areas of the campground. The second night was shaping up to be the same as the first.
He had seen Lucia the night before. She had been standing at the edge of the cabin area looking for him. She checked to make sure nothing was going on. Beyond that neither of them spoke. If he was honest with himself, he would say he was getting bored. Not that he necessarily wanted something to happen. But simply watching women wander from one cabin to another all day was not what he considered interesting.
It did not help that he felt irritable. It had been two weeks since Gwen and Cesar left for Montana. Viking wasn't the only one getting antsy for Gwen to come home.
Raider had been quieter than usual. Really only speaking when he snapped at the younger warriors.
Poet was not making jokes. Or making any sort of inappropriate comments. It was so unlike what Viking knew of the other man that it was becoming even more of a strain.
Viking couldn't wait until Gwen and Cesar got back. Even if things would not go back to the way they had been. At least they could build on the new sense of normal. He wasn't sure how Cesar intended to have Gwen's guard set up now that he was moving his headquarters to Washington. Before they left Cesar let them know that he would be the head of Gwen's guard no matter what. For that, he was grateful.
Viking heard voices of several women coming closer to where he stood. Even though he knew they would not be able to see him. He played it safe and moved farther back into the tree line. As he watched three women came in to view.
The one closest to him was tall and built solid. She had a lot of curly hair held back in one of those clips women seem so hooked on.
The one on the far side was the same height as the one closest to him. However she was a rail thin.
Before he could get a good look at her, the one in the middle spoke.
"I keep telling you, Die Hard Five never happened. You will never convince me that that movie actually exists. I think if I believed in its existence it would ruin the whole franchise for me."
The two taller women started laughing. Viking felt himself smile. It was one of the more interesting conversations he'd overheard in the last day.
"No Mia, you have to take the bad with the good. If we didn't have the bad movies how would we know how good the good ones actually were?"
Viking could almost hear the woman rolling her eyes from where he stood in the trees.
"I'm going to pretend you didn't say that so we can continue to be friends."
He could tell all three women were laughing now as they walked by the set of trees where he stood. Then the one in the middle stopped. It was the first time he could get a good look at her.
She had pale brown hair up in a high ponytail. The tip of which was barely in line with her jaw. She had large green eyes and while not as petite as Gwen, definitely smaller than the two women she was with.
She looked around. The look on her face told Viking she could sense him there. Maybe not him in particular but she knew someone was out there with them. She began scanning the tree line and out of habit Viking moved a little farther back. He knew she wouldn't be able to see but at the same time something in his gut told him not to discount her. He was willing to bet she must've been some kind of sensitive, and could feel him out in the woods. After a moment the other two ladies stopped a pace or two ahead of her.
The one closest to him with the curly hair turned and looked at her friend. "Mia you okay?"
The shorter woman continued to look out into the woods. Viking couldn't help it, he was intrigued. She was a beautiful woman and clearly had some sort of abilities.
If it was any other situation he would walk right out of the woods and introduce himself just to throw her off. But he knew this wasn't the time or the place to make that kind of introduction. He memorized her face so that she could describe this woman, this Mia, to Lucia later.
She continued to look out into the woods a few more seconds. Her brows furrowed. Clearly frustrated that she could sense him but couldn't see him. Then she shook her head and turned back to her friends.
"Yeah everything is fine, just thought I heard something."
The taller woman with curly hair did her own quick scan of the woods. While the thinner one seemed to look nervous. Mia walked a few strides until she was even with the two women.
"I don't see anything." Said the woman with curly hair.
There was almost a shudder from the woman farthest from him. "You know I hate it when you do that. It always makes me think that there's some kind of bogeyman out there that is going to get me as I turned around. If I have trouble sleeping tonight, Mia, it is totally your fault."
Mia shook her head. "Come on, let's just head to bed."
Viking watched the women walk away. He didn't hear them say anything else. He didn't know what it was about this Mia woman. He had only seen her for maybe a minute, tops. But there was something about her that got his attention. There was nothing interesting about her, other than she might've been a sensitive.
Viking shook his head to clear it. He need to be concentrating on watching the campgrounds, not just one single, attractive, woman. Sighing, Viking turned around and headed in the direction of the far end of the camp so he could start yet another check around the perimeter of the camp.
Later that night, he wasn't sure of the time, while Viking was walking between the mini cabins he found Lucia waiting around the backside of one of them.
Her long pale brown hair had been wrestled into a top knot. A slightly bulky long sleeved pajama set with coffee beans dancing all over it, hid
her toned frame. Making her look shapeless. She had that knowing smirk she always seemed to wear on her face. Her lavender eyes sparkled with amusement even from several feet away.
Slowly, he made his way over to her. Once he was maybe a yard away she pushed off of the building and took a step toward him.
"So, I'll take that bored expression on your face to mean nothing interesting happened." Lucia smiled as she spoke.
Viking rolled his eyes. "It's not like we want something to happen, Lucia." He wasn't entirely sure if that was true for her though. With Lucia you never knew exactly what she was aiming for.
Lucia scoffed. "Well no, of course not. I just meant it as a joke. Anyway, since things seem to be fine, I'm going to bed. You can hitch a ride back with me tomorrow. I'm going to be leaving at about eleven am."
He nodded. As Lucia turned to leave, Viking's curiosity got the better of him. "Lucia one question. Do you know of a woman named Mia?"
She stopped walking away. At the end of his sentence she pivoted and turned to look at him curiously, head cocked to the side.
There was a faint smile on her face. "I might, why?"
There was no way to say it that wouldn't be uncomfortable. But something about the woman tugged at him. Letting out a sigh, Viking cracked his neck. "She walked by with two other women when she stopped. I know she could sense me standing there, but couldn't pinpoint where I was. I wondered if she was a lower level MP or a human sensitive."
Lucia's smile turned into a frown. She almost looked disappointed. "She is not a MP. I would know if she was. If I had to guess, I would say sensitive. But Sensitives usually have a slight colored glow to them and she doesn't have one that I have seen. Maybe you are just not as good at hiding as you think you are."
Viking didn't comment on the insult. The tone in Lucia's voice told him she did not think that was a real option.
She shook her head. "I do not know. I will have to look into it. I will let you know if I find anything interesting. Anyway, if there is nothing else, I am going to bed."
When he didn't say anything Lucia turned and walked to the front of the cabin she was staying in.
After a moment Viking shook thoughts of the strange woman from his head and continued his rounds.
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It had to be past two am when Viking heard a scuffle in the woods near the mini cabins. Sprinting toward the sound Viking reached the edge of a clearing in under a minute. He stopped at the tree line and surveyed the scene.
Mia stood in the clearing in a fighting stance. Her lean friend stood behind her off to the side, with an expression that resembled a deer in headlights. Three men a few feet away. The one who appeared to be the ringleader was shorter than the other two with a shaved head. All three dressed in black and glared at Mia angrily. Before Viking could make a move, the ringleader spoke.
"We're not going to hurt you girly. Let's just do this the easy way. You just come with us. You and your little friend. All we need from you is to grab some stuff your lady friends brought with them. Anything that will be able to make quick cash. If you don't help us, it's going to be more painful for you than it will be for us."
Viking visibly saw Mia's temper flare. She didn't seem afraid of these thugs. Which, in Viking's estimation, didn't necessarily seem like the best plan considering she and her friend were probably outclassed.
"You idiots really think this is going to work for you? Best case scenario for me is I scream bloody murder and the entire camp comes out here, cell phones in hand, all taking pictures and calling the cops. Now, will you choose not to be stupid and just hop right back over the fence and not come back?"
Her friend was less than thrilled with this statement. It was obvious by her expression she was much more afraid and less confident in the situation the Mia.
Then with a scoff all three men ran for the girls. Viking didn't need any more of a queue than that. He burst from the tree-lined and planted himself in front of Mia and her friend. All three thugs stopped dead two feet away. The shock on their faces told Viking they had not seen him coming and had not expected a man to be out in the woods at night.
"I'm just going to take this opportunity to introduce myself." Viking made sure his voice was even and calm.
He could easily take these guys. It would be minimal effort. But he would rather not if he didn't have to.
"I’m the extra security hired by these camp goers to protect them from situations just like this. So if you, not so upstanding gentleman, would like to leave the way you came, that would be much appreciated. Otherwise, I'm going to be causing you bodily harm and you're going to spend the rest of your night in jail."
One of the other men scoffed and lunged at Viking. Viking's Warrior speed connected his fist with the other man's face before the man knew what happened. His Warrior strength sent the guy falling to the ground. Viking knew he broke the guy's nose. The other two guys paused a moment as if contemplating whether or not to attack. They seem to think better of it because after a moment. They hauled up their friend and all three of them ran out into the woods in the opposite direction of the cabins.
Viking watched the woods after them. He swore he saw a shift in the trees behind them. Not the men themselves but something else. If Gwen had been there he would've asked her if she saw anything. Since she was still on her pseudo-honeymoon he had to leave it be.
Turning around, he faced the two women. To be gentlemanly, he moves two paces back so as to give the women their space.
Mia was still in her defensive stance eyeing him warily. She clearly hadn't decided whether he was a threat or not. He found he liked that. This pretty woman wasn't automatically going to take him at his word. But instead, stayed vigilant. Her friend, on the other hand, still looked frightened but much less so than before. She was eyeing Viking warily. But she was more unsure than scared.
Viking inclined his head to the ladies. "Hello, my name is Viking. I know you don't know me but Lucia asked me to scope out the place as extra security this weekend. I guess she was uncomfortable with this particular location. And since I do security for living, she figured I would be the best addition. You don't have to believe me. You can always ask Lucia in the morning before you leave. But just to prove I don't mean you any harm. I'm going to stay right here while you ladies head back to whichever cabin came from. That way you know that I don't know which particular cabin is yours. So you don't have to worry about me following you."
He wasn't about to add that he could easily find them by tracking. That wouldn't put them at ease at all.
Mia blinked at him a moment trying to decide if he was a threat. Then she backed up two steps. Almost running into her friend. She lowered her arms and finally looked away from him. She made eye contact with her friend before they both headed off in the direction of the cabins. Though the entire time they were in eyesight Mia seemed to make sure she could always keep one eye on him as she walked.
She just kept getting more and more interesting in Viking's opinion. It was too bad he didn't really have time for women.
Once the women disappeared Viking found himself wondering if Lucia had known something like this might happen. Or if she had some sort of inkling something might happen. Shaking his head Viking headed in the direction the men had taken. There was no use in assuming they left. He had all the time in the world, he might as well follow them.
Chapter 2
Sunup came too soon for Mia. She had barely gotten to sleep when she saw the first slivers of sunrise peering around the curtains in the window of the cabin she shared with her friends. She spent the time thinking about the man she and Melissa saw in the woods. The whole thing seemed very strange. She had every intention of asking Lucia about him. If Lucia hired him, so be it. But if not, Mia was going straight to the police station.
Although she debated going to the police station anyway to report the three crazy guys who it attacked Melissa as she went to the restroom.
It was a terrible end to a mediocre we
ekend. Now she was only going to be running on three hours of sleep. Good thing Lacey drove. Maybe Mia would be able to catch some sleep in the back seat on the ride home. She doubted it.
She still had breakfast to get through. Sighing, she looked about the small cabin and made eye contact with her two friends.
"You ladies ready to go?"
Lacey nodded, her curly hair bouncing around her face. "Yep. I'll be ready as soon as I run a brush through my hair and get it out in my face."
Melissa just looked up as she nodded.
Mia stifled a yawn as she watched Lacey aggressively tame her curls. Once she had it back in a ponytail the three of them left the cabin.
Breakfast today was much more relaxed than usual. There were no prepared speeches or agendas today. The only rule of thumb was breakfast would being put away or thrown away, as the case may be, at ten o'clock.
As they left the cabin it looked as if a good half the retreat had the same idea as Mia and her friends. It was about nine-thirty and a bunch of them were just now making their way to breakfast in the main hall.
When they entered the main room Mia, Lacey, and Melissa all went to stand in line behind the dozen or so other women getting food at the buffet style table. Mia could see the food from here and she was a wee bit disappointed.
From the looks of things, there were bagels and cream cheese both in multiple flavors. As well as yogurt and granola. There also seemed to be coffee, tea, and orange juice at the opposite end of the table.
Altogether it wasn't necessarily a bad spread, Mia had a more protein rich diet than this. She had hoped for something like sausage or bacon. Even though she realized that was a pipe dream. As she and her friends made their way forward, none of them said anything. It was as if all three of them were waiting to socialize until they had already gotten their coffee.
Most of the room was in the same state. The women at the tables were chatty and happy. Everyone in line getting food seemed groggy and a little frustrated. Mia didn't know what it was about the Seattle area and their coffee. She simply knew everyone seems to have the addiction.
Viking Sensitivity (Night World Series Book 2) Page 1