by Lynsay Sands
“Oh, I never thought of that,” Alex admitted, her eyes wide.
Wyatt shrugged. “Like Mortimer said, I’m a bodyguard by trade. It’s my job to think of these things.”
“So, you’re the brains on this job,” Sam said with a smile.
Alex raised her eyebrows. “What’s that make us? The muscle?”
“I guess it does,” Sam agreed with amusement.
“Yeah, well, I know it does,” Wyatt assured them with amusement, and when they glanced to him with curiosity, he explained, “Sofia picked up G.G. and carted him around like he was a toddler the other night. If you two are as strong as her, you’re definitely the muscle, and I’m content to be the brains.”
“Wow,” Alex said again. “Doesn’t have to drive, and doesn’t feel his manhood is threatened by being around women stronger than him. I think I’m impressed.”
Elspeth didn’t say so, but she was rather impressed herself. She was quite sure Wyatt wasn’t used to thinking of himself as the physically weaker one in the group. Especially when that group consisted of women . . . but he was handling it well.
“So, exactly how strong do these nanos make you?” Wyatt asked with interest once they were in the SUV and had pulled out of the garage. “Is someone G.G.’s size the limit, or could you pick up two guys his size? Three? Could you pick up a car?”
Elspeth noted the blank look Sam and Alex exchanged in the front seat, and said, “I don’t know. I’ve never tried to pick up two big guys like G.G. Or one, for that matter, let alone a car.”
“Neither have I,” Alex admitted, turning slightly in her seat. “I’ve picked up a stove to move it once, but have never had reason to pick up two or three guys or a car.” Shifting her gaze to her sister, she asked, “Sam?”
Sam shook her head. “The heaviest thing I’ve had to carry was Mortimer once when he got injured. I’m not sure what I can lift.”
“We should test it out sometime,” Alex suggested as the gate began to open.
“Yeah, we should,” Sam agreed, waving at Frances and Russell as she drove through the gates. “How?”
“I don’t know. Maybe hit a gym with weights, pile on a ton, and see if we can lift them,” Alex suggested.
Sam snorted at the suggestion. “Oh yeah, like that wouldn’t raise any eyebrows.”
“Yeah, I guess,” Alex agreed with a grimace and then shrugged. “I’ll think of another way.”
Silence fell briefly in the car, and then Alex twisted around to peer at Wyatt and said, “So, you’re a bodyguard by trade?”
Wyatt nodded.
“Have you ever guarded anyone interesting?” she asked with curiosity.
Wyatt shrugged. “Depends on who you think is interesting. I’ve worked with actors, actresses, musicians, politicians, and the wealthy.”
Alex looked impressed, and then asked, “Who was the most interesting?”
“Elspeth,” he said at once. When Elspeth turned to him with surprise, he smiled wryly and pointed out, “The others were all mortal. You guys are the most interesting people I’ve ever met.”
“Ah,” Alex said with a grin. “What a sweet talker.”
Wyatt smiled faintly, but asked, “So Elspeth is one hundred forty-two. How old are you girls?”
“Okay, so not such a sweet talker,” Alex said on a laugh, turning forward in her seat.
When Wyatt frowned slightly and glanced to her, Elspeth reminded him gently, “It’s rude to ask a lady her age.”
“Even an immortal?” he asked with surprise. “I mean, since you guys all look young and hot, I didn’t think it would be an issue.”
“Nice attempt at a save,” Sam said, smiling at him in the rearview mirror. “And while that may be true for Elspeth and others born immortal, those of us who were turned still tend to be a little self-conscious about our age. Give us a century or two and that might change, but right now . . .” She shrugged and returned her attention to the road.
When Wyatt glanced to Elspeth, his eyes wide, she raised her eyebrows. “You look surprised. You thought Alex and Sam were born immortal?”
“They’re sisters. I just assumed . . .”
Elspeth nodded. “Sam was turned first. She met Mortimer while at their family cottage up north. Mortimer and a couple of other hunters were in the cottage next door. They were on the job at the time looking for a rogue immortal in the area.”
“And then I spent ages trying to find life mates for my sisters,” Sam told him with a wry shake of the head.
“Sisters?” Wyatt asked at once. “There are more of you?”
“One more,” Alex told him. “Our youngest sister, Jo. She found her life mate next.”
“Yeah, and that nearly gave me a heart attack,” Sam muttered.
“Why?” Wyatt asked with curiosity.
“Jo’s life mate is my cousin, Nicholas Argeneau,” Elspeth told him with a smile and then explained, “He was kind of considered rogue at the time.”
“Fortunately, that was all cleared up,” Alex told him lightly. “And then I met my life mate, Cale.”
“My brother,” Elspeth told him, and when his eyebrows rose, she shrugged. “I have a lot of family.”
Sam snorted at the claim, and said, “The Argeneaus were one of the original Atlantean families. They’ve been making babies for millennia. You can’t turn around without tripping over one.”
When Wyatt turned to her with curiosity, Elspeth shrugged and admitted, “I have relatives I’ve never even met yet.” Noting his shock at the comment, she quickly added, “But then, until recently, I didn’t get out much.”
“That’s an understatement,” Sam said dryly. “And in point of fact, you haven’t really got out much since moving to Canada either.”
“What?” Elspeth met Sam’s gaze in the rearview mirror with surprise.
“Well, you haven’t,” she pointed out. “You’ve mostly worked, shopped for furniture for your apartment, and spent your downtime relaxing with Meredith.”
Elspeth frowned. What Sam said was true, but—“I’ve only been here six weeks,” she pointed out defensively. “And I had to buy the furniture. Besides, once I’m done with work and shopping, I’m usually tired and Meredith is soothing and . . .”
“I wasn’t criticizing you,” Sam said gently. “There’s nothing wrong with being a homebody. It’s probably why you were able to withstand your mother’s overprotectiveness and controlling for so long without going crazy.”
Elspeth turned to peer out the window as she considered Sam’s words. She wasn’t a homebody. Was she? She wanted to go out and party with the girls. She wanted to go to movies, and shop, and . . . well, do whatever it was normal people did when they didn’t have a mother hovering over them and restricting their every move. Didn’t she?
“Here we are.”
Elspeth glanced up at that announcement from Sam to see that they were pulling into the Walmart parking lot.
“So,” Wyatt said, glancing out the window as Sam found a spot near the back of the lot. “The sun’s still peeking over the horizon. I thought since you were out a little earlier than this when I followed you to The Night Club that the sun wasn’t a problem for you. But Sam mentioned the sun-filtering film on the SUV.” Raising his eyebrows, he asked, “Is the sun a problem? Is having to walk so far in it going to be an issue?”
“No. We’re fine,” Elspeth assured him solemnly. “It’s not like we burst into flame when sunlight touches us. It just does the same kind of damage it does to mortals, only a little more of it. At least, for those of us who were born immortal,” she said and explained, “We’re trained from childhood to avoid the sun, so having had minimal exposure to it, our skin tends to be more sensitive.”
“Then why do you avoid the sun?” he asked as he pulled on his jacket. “I mean, if your skin reacts the same way as ours—”
“Because unlike mortals, the nanos immediately repair the damage,” she explained.
“And they use blood to do
it,” he said with understanding.
“Exactly. We try to avoid anything that will force the use of more blood.”
“Cold has the same effect,” Alex announced now. “The body tries to keep the body temperature regulated and uses more blood to do it.”
Sam added, “A lot of things do that. The heat in the summer means more blood is used to cool the body. Exposing ourselves to lots of people and the germs they carry means the nanos work to remove those before they can make us sick, and so on and so forth. Basically, pretty much everything forces the nanos to work harder and use more blood.”
“Then we’ll make this shopping trip a quick one,” Wyatt announced, opening his door, and letting the cool air in.
They didn’t just walk quickly through the parking lot; they were quick in the store too. Elspeth had never been a browser, meandering the aisles and looking at all the things she didn’t need or couldn’t afford. She knew what she wanted, and found them fast—a purse, a wallet, new lipstick and another blush, hairbrush and perfume. They were headed for the till when she saw the pocketknives. Pausing, she looked them over quickly and then selected one with a black blade and handle.
Wyatt was at her side the entire time, always with one hand on her arm or at her back. But she didn’t mistake that hand as anything but all business. She knew it was so he could move her where he wanted if something happened, because his other hand hovered constantly by the front of his coat, ready to slip in and whip out one of his guns. This man wasn’t the Wyatt she had met in Meredith’s hall and kissed on the back porch. This Wyatt was a soldier—straight, stiff, and braced for action. His gaze was narrowed, examining each passing shopper and searching the surrounding area for trouble. Actually, it was kind of disturbing, causing her tension level to ratchet up several degrees. Elspeth was glad to be done and head to the checkout.
The Apple store followed, but was an equally quick trip. Elspeth was able to get a new phone, but left it turned off until she could charge it properly.
They were just leaving the store to head for the car when Sam’s phone rang.
“It’s Mortimer,” she announced after glancing at the screen. Pressing the button to accept the call, she said, “Hello,” and then her eyebrows rose as she listened . . . and listened . . . and listened. Finally she said, “Okay. I love you too, honey,” and put her phone away.
“Everything okay?” Alex asked.
“Yes,” Sam said, and then explained, “Mortimer just wanted to let us know that Martine discovered that Elspeth wasn’t in her bed and called him to bawl him out for not having guards on her before this, and to see if she was at the Enforcer House. Mortimer told her where we’d gone, but that we’d no doubt head back to the apartment once done shopping.”
“Oh dear. I’m sorry,” Elspeth said with a wince, and then added, “She probably blamed him for my climbing over the balcony to avoid her too. Everything would be his fault, of course, and not hers.”
“Damn, girl!” Alex peered at her with amazement. “Cale said your mother could be controlling, but climbing over the balcony to leave your own apartment?”
“Yeah.” She shrugged helplessly. “Climbing down from the balcony was the only way to get out of the apartment without her attaching herself to me like a conjoined twin.”
Alex shook her head. “Why on earth did you invite her to visit if she’s this difficult?”
“I didn’t invite her. She and the twins just showed up. To surprise me,” she added with disgust.
Sam grimaced with sympathy and reached out to pat her arm. “I suspected as much when I heard she was here. I mean, her control issues are the reason you left England and moved here. Besides, you hadn’t mentioned that they were coming.”
Elspeth nodded solemnly. She’d become friends with Mortimer’s wife since she’d started helping out at the Enforcer House. She enjoyed talking to her and had shared things about her life.
“Gran mentioned that you moved here because your mother is controlling,” Wyatt admitted. “But isn’t moving out of the country a bit extreme?”
“Mother’s control issues are extreme,” Elspeth assured him.
“It took Elspeth almost a century to get to move out on her own,” Sam told him. “And she had to sneak around to do it.”
His eyebrows drew together with uncertainty. “I don’t understand. Are you saying—”
“She’s been trying to move out on her own since she was fifty years old,” Sam explained.
Eyebrows rising, Wyatt turned to Elspeth. “Why would that be a problem? I mean, once you were eighteen she couldn’t stop you from leaving.”
“Have you met Martine?” Alex asked with amusement. “She’s pretty intimidating.”
“But it wasn’t intimidation that kept Elspeth from moving out,” Sam said with a scowl. “Any time she said she wanted to move out, or get a job, Martine just took control of her and changed her mind for her.”
“You’re kidding!” Alex said with dismay, and then turned to Elspeth. “She didn’t, did she?”
“She did,” Elspeth assured her. “Fortunately, Dad stepped in when it came to an education and a job, but he let her have her way about the other. I think he felt we should fight for our independence otherwise.”
“Wait,” Wyatt said with a frown. “Are you saying immortals can control each other too?”
“Older immortals can read and control younger ones,” Elspeth explained quietly.
“Wow,” Alex breathed now, her gaze on Elspeth. “Your mother controlling you like that . . . That’s pretty messed up. What’s her deal?”
Elspeth’s eyebrows rose at the question. “Did Cale never explain the reason she’s like this?”
“There’s a reason?” Wyatt asked.
Elspeth nodded, but then glanced to Sam when her phone rang again.
The other woman pulled her phone back out, peered at the screen and groaned. “It’s your mother. Mortimer must have given her my number.”
“Decline it,” Alex suggested.
“No. She’d just call Mortimer and harass him and he has enough on his plate what with the Russians in town and Beth and Scotty getting themselves burnt to a cinder.” Hitting the button to accept the call, she turned to walk away.
Elspeth stared after her and then turned to Alex. “What did she mean when she said Beth and Scotty got burnt to a cinder?”
“Oh, right, you don’t know yet,” Alex said and then grimaced. “Well, you know that joke job you sent Beth and the Russians on the night your mother arrived?”
“Joke job?” Wyatt asked.
“A soft call. The hunters call them joke jobs,” Elspeth explained, and then turned back to Alex and asked, “You mean the call about a coffin in a barn?”
“Yes.” Alex nodded. “Well, it turns out the barn was booby trapped with wires and explosives. Beth was supposed to lead her team in there, get beheaded by wires, be trapped inside when other wires pulled the barn doors closed, and then be finished off with a firebomb.”
“What?” Elspeth gasped with shock.
Alex nodded.
“Is she all right?” Elspeth asked with a frown. “And how did Scotty get burned? He wasn’t working with Beth and the Russians.”
“No, he wasn’t,” Alex agreed, and then explained, “Scotty was among the backup, but before he got there Beth and one of the women with her went in to collect the pieces of the first Russian, it set off the firebomb. Beth came running out in flames, as Scotty got there. He threw himself on top of her to try to put out the flames and whoosh!” She gestured an explosive action with her hands. “He went up in flames too.”
“Damn,” Elspeth breathed.
“How?” Wyatt asked, his eyes narrowing. “Was some kind of accelerant splashed on everyone?”
“It wouldn’t be needed,” Elspeth said quietly. “We’re extremely flammable. In fact, it’s the only real way to kill an immortal.”
“And beheading,” Alex put in.
“Yeah,”
Elspeth agreed, but added, “Although, even that can heal if the head’s put back on the neck quickly enough.”
“Seriously?” Wyatt asked with amazement.
Elspeth nodded, but asked Alex, “Do they know who the trap was for and who set it?”
“They’re pretty sure it was meant for Beth, but they have no idea who’s behind it.”
“Jeez,” Elspeth breathed. “Poor Mortimer. His plate is overflowing just now.”
“Yeah. Sam’s worried about him. She says the stress is really starting to pile up. I mean first they drag off more than half his hunters to Venezuela, and then everybody and their brother hops on the rogue bandwagon up here. Now Beth and Scotty got themselves toasted.” She shook her head. “I guess they brought them to the Enforcer House and the pair were screaming all that first day and part of the second too. Sam and Mortimer haven’t had much sleep lately.”
“No, I don’t imagine they have,” Elspeth said solemnly.
“Yes, and—”
“Grrrrr! Argh!”
Elspeth glanced to the side even as Alex did and they watched Sam drop her phone in her purse as she returned to them.
“Your mother wanted us back right away,” she said dryly as she reached them. “But I told her we were still at Apple and would be another half hour.” Glancing to the store behind them, she smiled and added, “Which wasn’t a lie. We are still at the Apple store. Or at least in front of it.”
“So why are we going to be another half an hour?” Alex asked.
“I thought since we’re in the neighborhood, I’d take you all to my favorite restaurant for burgers and the most amazing shakes ever.”
“Sounds good,” Wyatt said.
“It does,” Elspeth agreed and then arched her eyebrows and asked with amusement, “Trying to delay going back to my apartment?”
“No. Your apartment is fine. In fact, I’d be happy to see it. I was hoping to delay having to deal with your mother,” Sam admitted bluntly.
“Hmm,” Elspeth smiled crookedly. “And here Mortimer told me you weren’t afraid of anyone.”