MARKED (Hunter Awakened)

by Rascal Hearts

  Chapter Four

  I was getting a headache and it had less to do with my head's collision with a car the night before and more to do with how I'd spent my last four hours. I'd been kept at the hospital overnight for observation, so sleep wouldn't have really been a possibility, even if they hadn't kept coming in every hour or so to check on me. I'd gotten home at nine and managed to get a few hours sleep before Harrison called to say that the agency would be sending over their best guys at one.

  He'd already talked with the studio about me taking the night off so whoever I hired wouldn't need to start until the next night. I hadn't been very happy about him doing that, but I hadn't complained too much. I was completely wrung out. Not only had I not gotten much sleep last night, but before I'd checked out, I'd gotten another visit from my favorite detectives. This time they'd had a name for me: Rufus Dietz.

  I hadn't really been shocked at who it was, but I had to admit that I had been a bit surprised that the cops had bothered to ask me if I'd known him. Either they hadn't done their homework or they'd wanted to know if I'd admit to the connection before Rufus and myself. I didn't have any problem sharing. I'd done nothing wrong. I'd told them everything, including the incident at the club. Detective Thomas had seemed amused by that, but Linden hadn't even cracked a smile.

  Instead, he'd just kept after me asking question after question until, finally, I'd snapped at him and asked if he was more concerned about prosecuting the pedophile who'd attacked me or the person who'd saved me from said attacker. I'd seen Linden's eyes flashing at that, but Thomas had stepped in and told his partner that it had been time to go. I'd been so pissed after the pair had left that I'd buzzed for a nurse and told her to get me the paperwork so I could go home whether the doctor cleared me or not.

  Now, I was sitting in my living room, trying to ignore the shocked reactions each time a new applicant walked into the room. Not only was my cheek still a little swollen from Paul hitting me, but I had a lump on my left temple from where I'd hit the car, and my other cheek was scraped from when I'd fallen in the parking lot. The palms of my hands were also a little scraped up, but they were at least as easy to hide as the bruises on the back of my head from where my hair had been pulled.

  It was five o'clock and I'd reached the last of the potential candidates. While I'd given each of the six previous ones a smile and told them I'd be in touch, I knew that none of them were going to work, just as I knew that this new one wasn't going to be the one either.

  The first man had looked good on paper. College graduate, three previous clients who'd provided glowing recommendations. Then I'd seen the names of the people he'd guarded before. All three were middle-aged former stars known for trying to recapture their youth. The moment he'd looked at me, I'd known exactly why those women had given him such high praise, and it definitely had more to do with his physique than it did with his ability to be a bodyguard.

  I doubted he and his previous clients had spent much time outside the bedroom. He'd behaved like a perfect gentleman with me, not even a hint of a leer on his handsome face, but I'd seen the way his eyes had flickered over me, as if wondering what I was wearing underneath my sweater and jeans, and if it would be an improvement over his prior clients.

  The second man who came in had been in his mid-fifties and had looked completely lost when I'd talked about various clubs or made references to various aspects of the movie / television business. Apparently, he'd spent most of his life guarding CEOs and trust-fund babies. Unfortunately, I needed someone who knew the business enough that if I said we had a three o'clock call time, he wouldn't need me to explain what that meant. I had enough on my plate at the moment that I didn't have the time to train someone.

  Applicant number three had been a baby-faced eighteen who'd kept calling me ma'am. He also hadn't been able to look me in the eye more than once, and that single time had been enough to make him blush a bright red. Number four had been more interested in telling me how much he'd loved all of the movies and TV shows that I'd been in than in actually applying for a job.

  Five had talked to me like I was an idiot, citing his numerous college degrees as if a BA in physics was really going to be relevant to what I needed. I was still trying to determine if the attitude had been because I was young, female or an actress, but it didn't really matter. Arrogance aside, he wasn't nearly as smart as he'd thought he was.

  The young man sitting across from me at the moment looked to be in his early twenties and the expression on his face said that he wanted to be anywhere but here. He was wearing the same suit as the other men, but his tie had been loosened, the top two buttons of his shirt undone. I'd never been a stickler for dress codes, but a job interview usually merited being a bit more well-groomed. Besides his appearance, Mr. Clayton Ames was slouching in his chair, sullenly staring at a spot above my head.

  I'd had about enough. “Mr. Ames, do you even want this job?”

  The question was blunt enough to get his attention. He looked over at me and I could see that his eyes were blood-shot. He was totally stoned.

  “We're done here.” I looked up at Paul and he nodded. It was good to know that he hadn't approved of any of these men either. Paul didn't talk much, but we appeared to be on the same page. “Thank you for coming in.”

  Ames blinked blearily at me, then pushed himself out of the chair. I waited until he was out of the room before closing my eyes and resting my forehead against my hand. I'd been afraid things would go this way. I tended to be picky about who my guards were in the first place—no brainless walls of muscle or scary ex-cons—but this group had been below most people's standards. It had taken me three months to find Paul, and it had been Harrison's insistence at a quick pick that had resulted in Todd being hired. I wasn't going to make that mistake again.

  “Excuse me?”

  A soft voice came from the doorway.

  I opened my eyes... and stared. The man standing in the doorway had dark brown hair that fell across his forehead in a way that made my fingers itch to push it back. His face was classically handsome, the kind of face that would've looked good in any time period, no matter how ridiculous the hair or dress. He was tall, close to six and a half feet, and muscular, easily dwarfing Paul, who was by no means small. All of that was peripheral though, even the high cheekbones and jawline that most models would've envied.

  Once I met his eyes, everything else faded away. They were a pale green, like no eyes I'd ever seen before. Like the first bud of spring, just barely peeking out, not yet darkened by the sun. Like the first shoots of grass poking up through the melting snow. Even that wasn't quite right. When I'd been a kid, one of the few times I'd been allowed to do normal childhood things and color, I'd seen a crayon that said it was sea green. I didn't know why it called itself that since the ocean wasn't that shade of green, but I'd loved that color.

  That was the closest I could get to this man's eyes. And it wasn't just the color that I found so mesmerizing. There was a depth to this man's eyes that made me think I could get lost in them. They were full of heartache, loss and pain, hidden by wisdom, compassion and an intensity that made me shiver. He only looked like he was a couple years older than me, but his eyes said that he was an old soul already.

  “Miss Rhines?”

  He'd taken several steps into the living room without me noticing. His voice was low, cultured, with just a hint of an accent that I couldn't quite place. I could feel my cheeks growing hot as I realized that I'd been staring.

  “Yes, I'm Teal Rhines.” I stood, fighting the light-headedness that threatened to make me sway. I didn't show weakness in front of my closest friends. I sure as hell wasn't going to show it in front of a complete stranger. “You'll have to forgive me, it's been a long day.”

  “I am hoping that this means you have not yet made a final decision regarding the open position.” He moved smoothly in front of the seat and held out his hand. “I am Elias Bane.”

  His hand was cool, his grip firm,
not that different from the six other men I'd interviewed earlier. What was new, however, was the electricity-like tingle that ran up my arm.

  “I thought the agency only sent over six people.” I almost smacked myself. That was a stupid thing to say.

  One corner of Elias's mouth quirked upwards. “I was not sent by an agency. I am here of my own accord.”

  Based on looks alone, I would've said Elias was twenty-three, twenty-four. The way he spoke, however, made him seem much older. I wondered if that was due to whatever language was his native tongue. I still couldn't place that accent. Against my better judgement, I was intrigued. I made a gesture. “Please, sit.”

  We both sat and I found myself feeling much more alert than I'd felt all day. “So, Elias, you want to be my bodyguard. Do you have a résumé? References?”

  He held out an envelope that I hadn't seen him carrying. While he silently waited, I opened the envelope and withdrew several sheets of paper. It took me a couple of minutes to read through them, but he didn't say a word, letting me take my time. Everything looked very impressive. Still, there was something about this man that I couldn't put my finger on, something that made me think that he wasn't being entirely honest.

  “I work on a show that shoots primarily at night, which means that your shift would start at eight o'clock at night. You would pick me up here, drive me to set and stay there until I'm done, which is usually about five o'clock. You'd then bring me back here, do your rounds until Paul arrives at eight. On the nights I stay in, you wouldn't be required to be here unless I specifically needed you, but when I'm filming, it's pretty continuous.

  There isn't much time off. I do have a few people I can call in an emergency, but this is a time-consuming job.” I wasn't sure why I sounded like I was trying to talk him out of it. I both liked and disliked the idea of those eyes on me all of the time. They made things in my stomach squirm.

  “I prefer a night shift,” Elias said. “It is one of the reasons I love cities. So many opportunities for those like myself who would rather work at night.”

  There was one issue out of the way.

  “As for the amount of time this job would entail, I have no difficulties with working many hours. I have no family and, if my work is enjoyable, I do not mind being about it for long periods of time. You will find that I need very little in the way of rest or vacation time.”

  Full dedication should've set off warning bells. No one was that enthusiastic about their job, not unless they were some sort of stalker, but I wasn't getting that stalkery vibe off of Elias. He seemed sincere, and there was nothing in his portfolio that I would've normally seen as a red flag. The praise wasn't too elaborate and there were none of the buzz words that I'd learned to look for, words that employers would put in references to let another potential employer know about a problem. Everything appeared to be in order.

  I glanced at Paul who shrugged. For Paul, that was as much of an endorsement as anyone was going to get. Still, I hesitated. It just seemed too good to be true. A mystery man who just happened to know about the job and have all the perfect qualifications? And not only that, he was extremely attractive too? I had a bad feeling that this was one of those things that was going to come back and bite me in the ass.

  But, as I looked at him, I found that I couldn't turn him away. It was almost like there was this connection between us, something stronger than both of us, that was tying us together. I've always been a big believer in fate and destiny, and I was certain that Elias was part of that, though I didn't know what part he would play.

  I held out my hand again. “Congratulations, Elias. You start tomorrow evening. Come by around seven-thirty so we can get all of the paperwork in order.”

  He smiled as he shook my hand. “Thank you very much, Miss Rhines. I shall see you tomorrow.”

  As he walked away, I couldn't help, but feel like he was trying to hurry away before he said or did something that he'd regret. What in the world had I gotten myself into?

  Chapter Five

  After Elias left, I knew I needed to call Harrison and tell him that I'd found someone. I'd have no peace until I did. It was a true testament to how concerned he was that I had six text messages and three voicemails. None were frantic, but I knew it wouldn't be a good idea to put it off. As Paul did his rounds to make sure the house was secure now that everyone had left, I made the call.

  “Before you say anything.” Harrison was talking before I could get a word out. “I'm sorry about the selection. Two of their best guards are on vacation, one retired and one broke his leg skiing. The pool was very small—”

  “Harrison,” I interrupted. “Yeah, those guys weren't very good, but there was a walk in.”

  “Tell me you didn't hire someone outside of the agency.” Harrison's tone changed from one of apology to a sharper one. “They do thorough background checks on every employee.”

  I ignored his protest. “I'm faxing over the information. Have your PI dig around all you want.”

  “That was dangerous of you to let this guy in without anyone vetting him first.” Harrison's bluster amused me. He never trusted the agency's background checks. He always did his own, and even they didn't always work. Case in point, my recently fired buddy Todd. I wasn't sure anything the PI had dug up could've predicted just exactly how big of a bastard he had turned out to be. Then again, maybe the PI's needed to report on everything rather than just the things they thought were relevant.

  Maybe we would've seen Todd being an ass to some kid. I made a mental note to talk to Harrison about that at a later time. At the moment, I just wanted to finish the conversation, get a good book and relax for the rest of the night. Maybe with some hot chocolate. I was going to be working my ass off to catch up from being out today. I might as well do what I was supposed to be doing. Resting. It wasn't like I got that much of it when we were filming. Bed between six and seven, up again around noon and no later than one, and pretty much running from the time she woke up until she laid down again.

  I pressed the send button on the fax. Harrison was still talking. He did like to listen to himself. I waited for him to take a breath and then cut in. “Harrison, I sent over the papers. Look it over. The guy's good. Besides, I had Paul give me the nod of approval.”

  “Paul approved?” Harrison asked, intrigue and reluctance making for an interesting combination. “He didn't like Todd.”

  “Exactly,” I said. “So I'm trusting his opinion.”

  “Please tell me you at least aren't having him stay at the house tonight.”

  “How stupid do you think I am, Harrison?” I asked good-naturedly. “He's starting tomorrow with taking me to the set. And don't say that I shouldn't be going in yet. I'm going to rest tonight and I'll be fine by tomorrow night.”

  “How are you feeling?” he asked.

  I knew better than to try to lie to Harrison. “My head's hurting a bit, but no worse than a normal headache.”

  “Make sure you're actually resting, Teal. No reading scripts or memorizing lines. Nothing work related.”

  “You act like you know me or something,” I joked. “I promise, Harrison. I won't do anything even remotely responsible other than following the doctor's orders.”

  “Good.” His voice softened. “Take care of yourself, kiddo.”

  “Will do.” I smiled even though he couldn't see me. “I'll talk to you tomorrow, I'm sure.”

  “Damn right.” He was back to being gruff. “Night.”

  He hung up before I could reply and I completely understood. Wouldn't want things getting to emotional between us, right? After I'd been emancipated, another actor who'd been in a similar situation a few years before had recommend I hire Harrison. I'd been skeptical at first. After all, I hadn't been able to trust my parents, how could I trust a stranger? Gradually, I'd come to realize that Harrison was a good man. I wouldn't say he was like a father to me, but I could see him being like an overprotective brother or uncle. I could only imagine what his react
ion would have been if he'd known that I thought Elias was cute.

  Dating was always an interesting mine field in Hollywood, I thought as I gathered my things together for a shower. You had your bad boys and girls who were with a new person every other week, usually other bad boys or girls, and often crossing from actors to musicians and sometimes delving into the athletic pool. Then you had the media darlings. These could range from power couples where both were huge stars in their respective fields, to the cutesy ones who generally fell in love on set. They were always in the public eye and everyone knew everything about them.

  Well, almost everything in some cases. I knew for a fact that most of those 'fell in love on set' couples were nothing but publicity. Neither person was dating anyone, so the network or studio or whoever decided that it would be good press for everyone to think that they were a real couple. I'd heard one executive suggest it about me and Bryson Jackson, my character's love interest on the show, and I'd laughed.

  Somehow, I didn't think Bryson's boyfriend of three years would've been game for that even though he was a real sweetheart in general. While Bryson wasn't openly declaring his sexuality, he'd never hidden it. He wasn't like some of the other guys and girls who used those arranged couplings as ways to hide who they really were. When I'd been on Never Enough, the girl who played my oldest sister and the boy who played her best friend had been a set up couple.

  Both just barely seventeen when the show started, they'd had everyone fooled the entire run of the show. The day our final shot wrapped, they both came out to the cast and crew before heading out to a press conference their agents had arranged. The backlash had been insane. Funnily enough, most people had been more upset that they'd lied than about their sexuality than about the fact that they were gay.