This was what it felt like to be alive. This was what it felt like to live. Kissing the person your heart beat for as though it was the last night of her life was the definition of living, and he promised himself he would memorize every part of it, every part of her, so he wouldn’t forget.
“Um, excuse me?”
Daryl couldn’t be mad at Marvin; they would have needed to break apart to breathe sooner or later. Jane’s breathing was ragged, and she didn’t even try to hide it. Daryl couldn’t help but smirk to himself; he was proud of this accomplishment. Normally, it was she who left him breathless.
“Seems to me we got a problem.”
“I sent them away,” Daryl said.
Perhaps he was a little breathless as well.
Jane slid back down to her feet, but her hands still lingered on his waist, and for that he was glad. He wasn’t quite ready to not touch her just yet, afraid she might slip away once more.
Marvin gave Daryl a look. “Like that’s going to stop them for long,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. “You know they’re going right to Arbuckle with what happened.”
“I wiped their memory clean,” Daryl pointed out, a touch annoyed. “I’m not a novice.”
“Just an imbecile,” Marvin said. “They want Janie over here, and they won’t do nothing until they get her. What’s the deal with her anyway? I know she’s a looker, but besides a nice pair of tits, what’s she got going for her?”
Before Daryl could say anything, Jane stepped out from Daryl’s grasp and clocked Marvin with her fist right in his jaw. She groaned in pain at the result, but in a strained voice, said, “I’ve been waiting to do that the past few days.” After blinking away tears, she looked straight at Marvin. “Asshole.”
He laughed. “I like this one, baby brother,” he said, a goofy grin on his face. “She’s a keeper.”
“I don’t need your permission,” Daryl growled between his teeth.
“No, but at her age, you need someone’s.” A pause. “Where’s everybody else? We need to talk about this, and I need my payment.”
“Wait.” Daryl took a step back to look at Jane. “What do you mean you’ve been waiting to do that the past few days? How long have you known my brother?”
Jane opened her mouth, ready to explain, when Marvin stopped her. “That’s part of the story, baby brother,” he said, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Right now, we need to go. Who knows if that bastard Arbuckle will send more of his guys to come back here once he finds out what happened. Or worse, comes down here himself with a bunch of peculiars who volunteered to be a part of his peculiar army and shit. We gotta meet up with that dean, that shifter, and that that red head, you hear?”
“And Brielle,” Jane insisted.
Daryl looked at her with a furrowed brow. “Miss Rivera?” he asked, unsure he heard her correctly. “What does she have to do with this?”
Again, Marvin interrupted. “That’s part of the story,” he said. “Now,” he took a step back and assessed the damage done to the property. “Your building is shit. See the damage?” He used his arm to sweep across the Ack Building’s width.
“It doesn’t look like it hit anyone,” Jane commented, sounding confused. “If anything, it looks …”
“It looks as though their intention was not to take anyone out, but to damage the facility,” Daryl said. He shook his head. This didn’t make any sense.
“Makes perfect sense,” Marvin said. Daryl gave his brother a flat look and forced himself to refrain from rolling his eyes.
“And what makes you say that?” Even his voice was tight. Controlled. He held onto Jane the way he was currently holding onto his sanity and not lashing out at his brother right now. A part of him was even jealous she got to punch him in the face.
“Why would he want to hurt, no less kill, peculiars?” Marvin asked, raising his brow and cocking his head to the side. “He needs us, baby brother. Don’t you see that? He needs us to run experiments on and to learn more about our powers. To breed us and to form a super army.”
“You think he wants to form an army?” Jane asked, her tone filled with doubt.
“Why else would he be so insistent on breeding us?” Marvin’s tone was still condescending, but his question stopped Daryl from snapping at him.
“He’s right,” Daryl said.
“’Course I am,” Marvin said.
“Arbuckle wants an army,” Daryl continued. “Not just any army, but an army with our abilities. If we were trained tactically and for combat …” His black eyes widened. “We’d be unstoppable.”
11
Jared wasn't known for leadership. He could fly a plane and drive a car like a professional. He could dress himself better than any 6-figure stylist. He was genuine and warm, but could carry his weight in both strength and intelligence if need be. The guy wasn't a peculiar, but he was a superhuman, exceeding expectations peculiars had of panpi in general. When Ethan told Will he was leading a search team, Will could admit he was dubious. However, he trusted Ethan completely and this was no exception. If Ethan thought Jared could handle it, Will would do whatever needed to be done in order to help.
He was grateful Sophie had let him leave without much of a fight. He knew she would want to be part of the search team, but he couldn't have her out there. Not yet. As a veteran and a trainer, Will could tell when members of his unit were mentally ready to take on physical combat. It was an innate skill he had developed and perfected over time. As determined as Sophie was, he knew without a doubt that she was not yet ready to be responsible for other people, let alone herself. What he told her about being a distraction to him was true; however, there was more to it that he didn't want to tell her for fear of hurting her. Sophie, he knew, was still racked with guilt over what happened to Jane, believing it to be her fault. She would be a disaster in the field, to be blunt, and wouldn't be as helpful as she hoped. At least here, he didn't have to worry about her. Ethan would keep an eye on her, and maybe even Jason would, too.
Just the thought of that boy caused Will to bristle, which frustrated Will. Jason shouldn't have that much of an effect on him, but he did. Especially after finding out Sophie had stopped by to his dorm room in order to apologize. Apologize for what, exactly? For breaking up with him? For being with Will?
As dangerous as it was for Will having Jason know about him and Sophie, Will would be lying if said he didn't feel a swell of pride puff up his chest. Will was with Sophie now, not Jason. She had chosen him.
It sounded so childish even to his own ears. He hated that he saw Jason as a threat to his relationship with Sophie, especially since he had never felt this way about anyone before. The women he had been with had never made him feel this way before. He was never jealous or protective, never got butterflies in his stomach in anticipation of seeing her or how electric he felt when he touched her. How making love made his toes curl. How the color of her hair was his new favorite color, and the red dress she wore to the gala was stunning. He still could picture her in it, the way the dark crimson hugged her curves, the way the material flared out when it reached her hips. She was stunning and entrancing, and she was all his.
The fact that Ethan had offered her a position working with Will at AckPec, where she would always have a home and a paycheck and a roof over her head felt like a blessing. He had no idea why Sophie was thinking about it. Ethan didn't hand out career opportunities like that for just anybody. He trusted Sophie, of that Will was certain, but Ethan just genuinely liked her for him to ask her to work for him. Will had been with the school for decades and hadn't remembered a student or graduate being offered a paid position. There was an internship available, but that had an end date, and transitioned the students into either a real world job or college, not a career with the academy.
What would make Sophie hesitate? The only thing Will could think of was that she didn't want to commit to the school for the rest of her incredibly long life. Which he could under
stand. But certainly she could commit to him, couldn't she? And the fact that he had been here a long while and had no plans to leave should give her no reason to doubt his love and commitment to her.
Maybe ... Maybe it was she who had commitment issues. Hell, her own parents couldn't commit to her, and she was a product of their creation. Not only that, but they used her desire to see them again, her desire for a family no matter how screwed up, against her, making a profit in exchange for turning her over to Michael. The memory caused Will's blood to boil and his fingers to curl into tight fists. If he saw either parent, it would be difficult to restrain himself from doing something bad. He had no idea how people could treat their own blood, their own child, that way. It didn't make any sense to him.
As the sole peculiar in a small family, he had to watch his parents and his brother turn old and die. He watched his nieces and nephews grow old and die, and their children and so on and so forth. It was why he refused to get serious with anyone, especially if they were human. He couldn't imagine watching someone he loved, possibly the mother of his children, die as well. On top of that, the statistics of mating with a human gave offspring a fifty-fifty chance of that child being peculiar. Mating with a peculiar increased those chances to seventy-five percent. He refused to think of the possibility of having to watch his children grow up and die while he was condemned to live life until the end.
Will always thought his life was difficult, to say the least. But after Sophie shared her life story with him back in Washington, he couldn't even imagine what she had to endure. Will was worried about ending up alone, which was why he put up a prickly front—to keep those he deemed unworthy from getting too close. Sophie was forced to be alone and desperately wanted to connect, to be a part of a group, to have a family of her own. Perhaps that was why the two of them were so entangled with each other. They provided something the other wanted in their life. Perhaps that was why Will took Sophie's hesitation with Ethan's job offer personally. He didn't want to let her go.
Now, however, was not the appropriate time to think about that. Will needed to focus.
"All right, everybody," Jared began. He had the high voice of a tenor, and Will was certain that given the chance at karaoke, he would crush it. He was an average looking guy—five-foot-ten, lean build, brown hair, blue eyes, long face—but his voice was clear and firm, like a university professor's. "It's been fifteen minutes since we heard gunfire last. We need to sweep the school to the best of our abilities. I'll need mentals to look for any indication that there's a threat either on campus or surrounding it. Physicus, be prepared to move debris of potential weapons. Shifters, I need eyes, ears, and noses, so whatever you can give me when you change, please do so. If we can split up into different teams and meet back here in fifteen minutes, we can come up with a plan for what to do next."
Will didn’t work well with others. It was one of his flaws. A flaw, to be honest, he didn’t particularly mind. He stayed and listened to Jared, showing the guy respect. However, Will had his own plan of attack, and if he wanted to enact it, he would need to bridge out on his own.
Without waiting for direction, Will shifted into a wolf, his pants, again, clattering to the floor. He already knew Sophie would take care of them, so when he returned, he could do so without scarring these kids for the rest of their long lives.
As a wolf, Will could see like no human before. His eyes were sharper, and he could pick up on subtleties he couldn’t as a man, like the motion of a butterfly’s wing. His scent was strong and could sometimes be overwhelming, especially when these teenage boys practically showered in body spray or girls used perfume to mask their sweat. That was the one downside to having perfect sense of smell.
However, after years of training—much of it thanks to Ethan—Will was able to home in on one scent and block everything else out. He also had to do it with his hearing as well. Sometimes, he heard everything at once, as though every single station of a radio was playing at the same time. Luckily, he knew how to focus on one and drown out the others. In situations like these, precision was key.
The minute Will was up the stairs and onto the first floor of the Ack Building, his nose was to the concrete and his nostrils were flared. He only had three people in mind – Brielle, Jane, and Daryl. Whoever’s scent he picked up first, he would go after.
Surprisingly enough, it didn’t take him long to narrow it down. It did surprise him who it was.
Brielle Rivera had been in the Ack Building during the shooting. As far as Will could tell, she had yet to leave.
What would she be doing here? he wondered.
Without thinking about it, he decided to follow her scent from where he picked it up, at the entrance to the building. His ears were perked, just in case he heard unfamiliar footsteps, but as far as he knew, it was silent. Will trotted down the hall over to the stairs. He took them six at a time, leaping up to the second floor. From there, his nose was on high alert, and before he realized it, his paws led him straight to Ethan’s office.
Unlike the first floor, the second floor was riddled with shattered glass, bullet holes, and bullet cases. If anyone was up here …
He shook his head, ridding himself of the thought. Best not to think like that. Not now, at least.
While exploring the second floor, Will took great care in ensuring to pick up any movement, any intake of breath, any sound that might indicate a survivor, someone in need of assistance, or even a hiding threat. His eyes focused on the glass on the floor, skirting it as best as he could so he wouldn’t step on any and injure himself.
His nose led him straight to Ethan’s office. Immediately, Will pressed his ear to the door and attempted to gage any sort of noise that would indicate Brielle’s presence. He didn’t even realize he was holding his breath until he heard faint breathing—shaking breaths inhaled sharply; tight, as though they were sucked in but not released.
Someone was alive in there.
He wished he had a mental with him to tell him if the person inside was a threat or not. He clenched his teeth together, debating on what he should do. Logic told him to wait until he was certain it was all clear. On the other hand, he was a wolf. He was almost positive he would move faster than an unsuspecting individual who definitely didn’t have his weapon ready.
But what if he did have his weapon ready? What if he was sitting in Ethan’s office, waiting for Ethan to return so he could kill him?
What makes you think the individual in there is male?
Will growled to himself. He had no other choice to go inside. If it was a threat, he would be prepared, ready for the consequences and the impending attack. If not, if it was Brielle and she was injured, it sounded as though she needed help. Now.
With that thought, he backed up a few paces. He couldn’t exactly shift right now in order to open the door. It would take force. There was a good chance his shoulder would wind up dislocated. Bracing himself, Will dashed to the door, throwing his shoulder into it.
12
He kissed her.
Daryl Depogare had kissed her.
Her head was spinning, her world had frozen, and her heart was doing jumping jacks against the inside of her chest.
Depogare had kissed her, and his older brother had ruined it.
“Are you okay to walk?” Daryl asked, taking a step back to look at her, his eyes as black and as calculating as ever. Jane knew she wouldn’t be able to hide the bags under her eyes, the paleness of her skin. If he could see her brain, she knew it would be bruised.
Her head hurt like hell, and all she wanted to do was to curl up in his silk sheets and sleep for the next three days.
“I’ll be fine,” she told him, and he gave her a doubtful look that said now was an inappropriate time to be stubborn. “We need to check on everyone else and see if they need help. I’m sure they’re worried about you, too.” Her eyes flashed green at him, warning him not to argue.
“Girl’s gotta point,” Marvin commented, though no one
asked him; he just gave his opinion freely, as though he thought his opinion mattered. Jane practically scoffed; the guy drove her insane, and she barely knew him.
In fact, she had no idea how he knew where to find her. She had no idea how he rescued her from Michael, if Michael even knew she was gone, and what consequences he set off by rescuing her. Well, she didn’t want to go too far and label Marvin’s grand gesture as rescue; Jane knew he was in it for the profit and that was it. There was no reason to feed his already enormous ego.
All she knew was that Daryl had told her during one of their shared dreams that his brother had agreed to search for her. Apparently, Marvin was some ridiculous tracker who made tons of money finding people. She didn’t know much else about the guy, and truth be told, she had no desire to. She wanted to get back to Sophie and Will and Ethan and her family, and try to resume her life. Easier said than done, yes, but Marvin disappearing back to wherever he was from would be a big step in that direction.
Daryl gave his brother a look, but kept his mouth shut. When his eyes rested back on Jane, they softened, and Jane’s heart soared. She knew, without a doubt, he didn’t look at anyone else the way he looked at her. All the love, all the passion he had for her was easily discernable in those eyes.
“We should get Kessler to check you out anyway,” he agreed. He glanced at Marvin from the corner of his eye. “Before exiting the premises, I did a sweep and couldn’t detect any oncoming threat.”
There was a pause, and Marvin’s lips curled up into a grin. “Are you asking me to double-check your work, baby brother?” he asked, and didn’t bother to mask his glee. “Now, I’ve seen everything. Certainly, I will do a sweep as well. Always willing to help family out.”
Jane watched as his eyes rolled back and his body turned rigid. After a few moments of standing perfectly still. Marvin’s shoulders relaxed and his eyes reopened. “Nope,” he said, shaking his head. “No threat.” He slapped Daryl on the back. “You done good, Daryl. In all aspects of your life, if you get what I’m saying. Now. Can we get back to campus?”
The Stranger Trilogy Box Set Page 58