by Becca Van
He glanced up from the computer monitor he’d been working on and pushed to his feet and stepped toward her. When the baby faced deputy asked him a question he stopped to answer before continuing to the counter. His eyes ran over her hair, face, and clothes but not in a sexual way, and then he shoved his hand out over the counter in greeting.
“I’m Deputy Sheriff Reece House, please call me Reece, and you have to be Calysta Adani.”
“Yes. Pleased to meet you, Reece. Please, call me Caly.” Since she was dealing with another officer of the law she didn’t hesitate to give her first name. She’d never been a stickler for demanding respect from a title because she always figured respect was earned. They were, after all, on the same side and had the same goals.
Reece nodded and after shaking hands with her, he released his clasp and opened the small thigh-high doorway to let her through. He tilted his head in the classic ‘follow me’ gesture and then led the way through the main office to the back hall. She followed him into the room and moved aside so he could close the door. He hurried over to the desk but before he sat in the chair behind it he turned to face her.
“Can I get you anything? Coffee?”
“I’m fine, but thanks.”
Calysta retrieved her digital tablet from her purse and then met Reece’s gaze. “Have you found any trail yet?”
“Other than what was in the report, no.”
“Forensics said they found blood from both Deputy Stravinsky and Sheriff Westly at the sheriff’s home. Do you think they were intimately involved?”
“Fuck no!” Reece said in a shocked voice. “That is so far from the truth it’s not even funny.”
“Why do you say that?” Calysta asked.
“Because Darrien hated Nikita with a passion.”
“Love and hate are opposite sides of the coin.”
Reece shook his head. “There is no way in hell. Niki was the best of the best, and although Darrien had a grudging respect for her ability, he was a misogynistic prick.”
“You and Niki were close?”
Reece bristled. “Not in the way you’re suggesting, Special Agent Adani.”
“Caly,” she said in a softer voice. “You know I have to ask all the questions, Reece.”
“Yeah, I know.” He scrubbed a hand over his tired face.
“Did forensics find any other DNA at Westly’s house, or on the body?”
“A single strand of hair.”
Calysta decided to shove her professional demeanor aside. “So you don’t have anything more than what is already in this report?”
“No.”
She sat back and studied Reece. She knew he was telling the truth and had probably spent hour upon hour and day after day searching for the missing deputy and mayor. The first time she’d heard about the problems in Rock Springs, Wyoming had been yesterday afternoon, when her commanding officer had told her to go home, pack a bag and head out first thing the next morning. She’d wanted to refuse and ask that this case be assigned to another FBI agent since she was still trying to get over the undercover stint she and her partner had done a couple of weeks ago. Her partner had been shot, and it was going to take her a while to stop running that incident in her head over and over, but when she’d met her superior’s eyes she’d kept her mouth shut.
She felt guilty that Rick had taken a bullet while they were working together and although she and her partner had done everything they could to back each other up, she hadn’t done enough. Calysta hadn’t slept worth a damn since that incident two weeks ago and every time she closed her eyes she saw Rick getting shot again and again and again.
After filing a report and talking to her superiors, even they said she hadn’t been at fault but that didn’t stop the guilt from battering at her soul day after day. She knew exactly how Acting Sheriff Reece House felt but she knew no platitudes from her wouldn’t take away what he was feeling.
“Do you have any idea where the mayor or the deputy might be? Do you think they’re still alive? Have there been any strangers in town? Do you have any idea why two people are missing?” Calysta held in her grimace when she realized she’d been rapidly firing question after question without giving the man a chance to answer. She was treating him like a criminal and although that wasn’t her intent, she had a job to do and she needed to know the answers.
“I don’t know. I have no clue but I don’t like this shit one little bit. Darrien is dead and my gut is telling me that the mayor is, too. He’s been missing for months. Niki, I have no idea. She was dedicated to the job so I would have to assume she’s dead, too.”
Calysta felt bad when his breath hitched on the last three words. Reece obviously cared about the missing deputy.
“Were you involved with Deputy Stravinsky?”
“No.” Reece sighed and sank back into his chair. “I was attracted to her at first and even asked her out but she declined. But when I found my Lucy I realized the attraction for my colleague was only superficial. We were friends, Special Agent. Nothing less, nothing more.”
“So you have no idea why the sheriff was murdered, or the mayor, and the mayor’s assistant and a deputy are missing.”
“No,” Reece answered and rubbed his tired eyes. “But I won’t give up until I have all the answers.”
Calysta nodded. “I expected nothing less.”
She pushed to her feet and waited as Reece walked around the desk. “Can you show me where the Mayor’s car was found?”
“Sure. Do you want to ride with me or follow?”
“I’ll follow.”
Reece nodded and headed out. Calysta hurried after him. Driving her own car would give her freedom she wouldn’t otherwise have if she’d ridden with the acting sheriff. Plus she was a bit of a control freak and didn’t like to depend on anyone else but herself.
Of course she and Rick had depended on each other and at first that had been hard but she’d learned she needed to trust that her partner had her back in sticky situations. She just wished she’d had his two weeks ago. If she had, he may not being lying in a hospital bed in a coma.
* * * *
The instant sleep claimed him Lance started to dream, but it wasn’t about that horrific incident he’d seen hundreds of years ago.
He couldn’t make out anything more than shadows but when he glanced to his sides he saw three other men in the room with him and they were all lounging, sitting, and kneeling on a bed. When he looked down toward the mattress he saw the silhouette of the most beautiful, sexy womanly form he’d ever seen and she was naked. He couldn’t really see her skin but he could make out the shadowy line of her small feminine curves. His mouth watered because he could smell her delectably sweet scent and his hunger to taste was too much to ignore.
His hands moved to her hips and landed on her soft, warm, silky skin before he even realized he’d moved but all thoughts fled when she moaned, her hips bowing up with silent demand and need.
Familiar voices floated to his ears and just as that familiarity edged into his mind, the knowledge about to break through, the woman’s whimper drew his attention. He flexed his hands and drew in a deep ragged breath when tingles raced up his arms, centered in his chest for a moment and then shot straight down to his half-formed erection. His cock twitched and bobbed and filled rapidly with blood and arousal.
He caressed over her hips, his hands so big on her petite feminine body, making sure to keep his touch light so he didn’t bruise her skin or hurt her in any way. He followed the contours of her waist, up over her ribs to the outside of her breasts. Lance paused for hardly more than a heartbeat and he held his breath as he finally moved his hands over the woman’s gorgeous well-endowed globes. The purring, sobbing sound she made as he kneaded her breasts shot straight to his heart and as he lifted his palms to graze her nipples with his thumbs, carnal desire raced and raged through his body.
It had been hundreds of years since he’d felt desire and although he felt a little guilty, as if he were
betraying his deceased mate, the lust was so strong it couldn’t be ignored. When he saw movement up near her head he looked up to see one of the other men taking turns to kiss her hungrily and even though he couldn’t see who the three other men were, he didn’t feel jealous or possessive in any way. In fact, it all felt right, as if they were all meant to be here at this very moment.
With a sigh of regret and plans to return later, he released her breasts, kissing, licking, and nibbling down her torso, stomach, and lower abs until he neared her mound.
The bed mattress dipped next to him and he glanced over to see the outline of a familiar face, causing his heart to stutter and then thump hard and fast in his chest. He closed his eyes just for a second and inhaled deeply. The musky scent of feminine desire seeped into his lungs and he had a feeling his life was about to change irrevocably.
When he once more opened his eyes, tears burned the back of them. The scene had changed but this time the three men who’d been with him were gone.
Three small yet surprisingly bright lights in the distance floated toward him. The closer they got the bigger and brighter they got until he was looking into the smiling faces of his deceased flight pod brothers and unclaimed mate’s eyes. He wished he could hug his mate one last time, but he would never get the chance again. Just as their forms solidified, they began to fade away again.
“No!” he yelled, his voice breaking as he closed his eyes in despair.
Lance’s eyes fluttered open, and when he saw they were all moving away from him, he wanted to scream at them to come back, but not because of the grief that had been plaguing him for so long. He wanted to call them back because he missed them so much. They had been his life, but now it seemed fate had played another hand for him.
The lights grew smaller and dimmer until finally they were gone. Two lone tears seeped out of each eye and trailed down his face. His eyes closed, and he sank into a deep dreamless sleep.
Chapter Two
Calysta scanned the Tough Creek Campground but knew she was wasting her time. She had scrutinized the files regarding Mayor Wallace Core, the photos and the information regarding his disappearance before Reece had led her out here, but there was practically nothing to go on. There had been no sign of the missing Deputy Nikita Stravinsky or the Mayor’s assistant, Belinda Starling.
What the fuck is going on? Why are so many people going missing?
And then there was the fact a man had been found outside of Ms. Starling’s house, dead in his car. His neck had been broken, but no one had found a connection to Reginald Lichen or the missing suspects.
Everyone who had gone missing was on her suspect list and until she proved otherwise she was going to scrutinize their lives with a fine toothed comb. Even Deputy Stravinsky.
But she had a gut feeling that if she dug deeper into Reginald’s life she might just end up finding a trail she could follow.
The guy hadn’t even lived in Rock Springs, so what the hell was he doing here and who had killed him? Had it been Ms. Starling? Even as that thought crossed her mind, she knew she was grasping at straws. It would have taken a tremendous amount of strength to kill Reginald by breaking his neck and from the stats she’d read about Belinda she was a petite woman and didn’t weigh much more than a hundred pounds. And from what Reece had said, it hadn’t been Niki Stravinsky either, because she’d been dogged in her determination to find the missing Ms. Starling, the mayor and apparently she’d been investigating her boss.
Calysta rubbed her tired eyes and tried to push the pounding pain in her head and temples back. She’d thought she would have found something in the information Reece had passed over but she had zip. Nada. That frustrated the hell out of her because she was supposed to report back to her superiors and she didn’t have anything new and nowhere else to turn.
She glanced over to Reece to find him staring out across the lake, his face drawn with exhaustion and tight lines of stress around his eyes and lips.
“Do you have any idea what’s going on?” Calysta asked.
Reece met her gaze and shook his head.
“What about the guy who was found murdered outside of the mayor’s assistant’s house? Did you run him?”
Reece nodded. “Nothing.”
“Where was he from?” Calysta moved closer so Reece wouldn’t have to continue raising his voice.
“Colorado Springs.”
The hackles on the back of Caly’s neck rose and tingled. That was her hometown. Her gut knotted and roiled as her mind spun off in several different directions but she cleared her mind before anything could take hold. She was just too damned tired to think straight.
Last night she’d been inundated with dreams she’d never experienced before. She’d woken up several times but no matter how hard she’d tried to clear her mind and calm her body, each time she fell asleep she dreamt about four men touching her. Each time she resurfaced to semiconsciousness, her body had been sheened with perspiration, and she’d been horny as hell. She’d never had erotic dreams before and wondered if her dormant sexuality was finally waking up.
Calysta had often thought there was something wrong with her because she’d never been interested in the opposite sex before and she was twenty-seven years old. If anyone found out she was still a virgin she would be humiliated. Not that it was anyone’s business but her own. However, she couldn’t work out why her body had chosen this moment to awaken. But the lust humming through her veins was an anomaly that she didn’t want to deal with right now. She had enough on her plate without having such a distraction.
She pushed those thoughts aside and got her mind back on the job at hand.
“Did you find out if Reginald has any relatives?”
“Yeah, he has an uncle.”
“I think we should concentrate on him.” Calysta turned away from the lake and headed toward her car. Reece followed with a sigh.
“He was clean,” Reece reminded.
Calysta turned to face him. “Not even a speeding or parking ticket?”
“No.” Reece frowned.
“Let’s dig deeper.”
Reece nodded. “I’ll see you back at the office.”
“Okay. Do you want me to pick up something to eat?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Any preferences.”
“Whatever you decide is fine. I’m not fussy.”
Calysta nodded as Reece got into his car and drove away. Hopefully by the end of the day they would have something more to go on, but she wasn’t about to hold her breath.
* * * *
Aiden knew the moment he opened his eyes that he, his flight pod brothers Alex and Andre, as well as Lance had dream shared last night. His heart was beating so fast with excitement and his cock was as hard as stone. He and the others had a mate and he was going to do everything he could to find her. His dragon was already pushing to get out to search for her but first he needed to talk to the others. They needed to talk about that dream and plan as to how to approach the one woman created just for them by the fates.
He didn’t linger in bed like he usually did and hurried to the shower. When he glanced at his face in the mirror he saw the sappy smile on his lips and the sparkle of anticipation in his eyes. From the moment their leaders Edrick, Erwin, and Elijah had met and mated their one, he’d been hankering to meet his mate.
He’d watched the other dragon shifters interact and fuck up with their woman and hopefully he and his flight pod brothers had learned what not to do once they met her, but although he was full of enthusiasm he was also going to remain cautious. The last thing he wanted was for their mate to reject or run from them.
For the first time in three hundred years he had something to truly look forward to. He just hoped that Lance would be on board.
When he’d realized the fourth man in the dream was their elder, he’d been shocked but then he’d been happy for him. Lance had spent three hundred years raising and nurturing them after losing his flight pod brothers and
his mate.
Lancelot Du Lac, or DeLuca as he was now known, had been alive way longer than any of them. How he’d managed to endure day after day without his friends and his mate, Aiden had no clue. Maybe that was why the big guy was so quiet most of the time.
He’d tried talking to Lance about the nightmares that plagued him too, but Lance had expertly redirected the conversation. Aiden was a doctor, which still surprised even him sometimes since he’d had to do all the schooling online. The practical experience had been hard to get since their kind remained hidden most of the time, but he’d been able to get the hours he needed even if it had taken him twenty plus years to do so. He’d even sat the final exams over a year but when he’d held his certificate in hand proclaiming him a GP, he knew it had all been worth it.
He’d watched over Niki when she’d been hurt by the hunters and he’d patched his friends up numerous times over the years. He just hoped he never needed to use his skills on their mate. That is, if she agreed to accept them.
How were they supposed to tell her what they were and that she had four men wanting to claim her?
When he was dressed he hurried out of his shared apartment toward the kitchen. Andre and Alex had left while he was bathing and he hoped they hadn’t decided to speak with Lance before he got there.
He glanced over to the massive dining table and sighed with relief when he saw his flight pod brothers were sipping on coffee while chatting in whispers. He looked toward Lance and sighed with frustration when he saw Niki and Bid were helping him with breakfast. Lance must have felt Aiden’s eyes on him because he saw his muscles tense but his elder didn’t turn around.
Aiden wondered if Lance even knew it was him and his flight pod brothers sharing that dream with him and their mate, but didn’t want to ask when the others could hear. Lance wasn’t very talkative usually but now that the women were here he was slowly coming out of his shell.