by Honor James
“I feel as if I am ready to crawl out of my skin. I don’t understand what’s wrong, but I feel as if there is a threat. I don’t like that feeling.” She looked up into his liquid eyes and felt herself calming somewhat. “I’ve never felt threatened coming in here before. Ever. What’s wrong with me?”
Frowning, he stepped in closer to her, blocking out everything from her line of sight but him. “It could be the programming and the mating combating one another. The programming is very specific and may go against your natural inclinations during the mating, and vice versa. It almost sounds like a panic attack, everything amplified to the point your fight-or-flight response is being triggered. As it’s one of the most primal protective instincts all beings carry within them, it’s also one that can’t be easily overcome or conquered. Your extra sensitivity because of the mating is likely causing you to pick up on something even we, the races, are unaware of.”
Her head was starting to pound, and a thin sheen of sweat broke out on her face. Shaking, she lifted her hand to touch his chest. “I don’t like this. I feel as if I’m out of control. I’m thankfully not searching for a phone, but I see nothing but enemies all around and these are people that I’ve known for a while.” Tears shimmered in her eyes, the programming having taken a seriously weird turn because of her mating.
“Shh, it’s okay,” he whispered. Pulling her into his arms, he enfolded her in his arms and held her tight. “Slow your breathing, Lilly, and just listen to my heart beating. No one is going to hurt you, they have to get through me before they could even get a shot at you and we both know you can outshoot everyone here. You are a kick-ass woman who takes no prisoners.”
She nodded and licked her lips again. “Okay.” She was shaky still, but not quite as full-blown panic mode as she had been. She looked up at him, still shaking, but whispered, “Something is wrong. I feel like everyone that is looking at me is the enemy. These are our friends, Ax. This isn’t right.” She didn’t like it, at all.
“We’ll figure this out, Lil, promise. Come on, sit in Gavriel’s chair, we’ll turn you a bit so you can’t see out into the bull pen and I’ll pull the blinds so you can’t see out if you look around.” He guided her to the chair before he drew all the blinds and tilted them just enough that, sitting, she couldn’t see out. Others could still see in partially, but her view was fully obstructed.
Grabbing up a thick folder, he handed it to her. “No pictures in there, it’s just written reports on all the cases with the guys with the tattoos. The crime scene report from the house you were in is in there as well. Dig through that and see if we have anything that might lead us somewhere. I’m going to handle all the photos. Take notes, and we’ll talk in an hour or so and see what we both have. Hopefully, we can get a lead on where we need to go next. And remind me, on our way out, to drop the sheet for the week off on the captain’s desk.”
“Sounds good to me.” She took the data pad that he passed her and began to look through the paper files and began to take notes on things that she saw in the files, frowning from time to time. She moved certain notes up to the top, highlighting and shifting, moving around the flow of the notes as she did so.
She had no idea how long they sat there, how long they took notes and went through the paper files until, finally, she looked up at him and cocked her head to the side. “Okay, these men all came from the same place, and entered the country at the same time. Same port as well,” she said with a frown. “And then after that they dropped off the map until they showed up dead and so on.” Dead or trying to kill innocent people.
“Okay.” He nodded slowly, tapping a photo to the desk as he stared out the windows. “Who signed them through the port? Same person each time, or different? Times the same for the crossings, or all over the map?” He leaned forward, looking at her now, as he used the edge of the photo to scratch his jaw. “We should also check and see who else was on duty. Could have been the one signing them through, or just a watcher on shift. If the same person worked each shift, that is someone we need to talk to.”
“I made a note to do just that,” she told him and tapped her finger on her knees. “So I guess that the question is, why there? And I also think that we need to get our happy butts to that port and start talking to people, don’t we?”
“Once we know just who to talk to, absolutely. So make up a list and then we will head over there.” He checked his watch before going back to his stack of pictures. “We’ll go another hour and whatever we have, we’ll go and start to poke those who may know some answers.”
“Sounds fair enough to me. We will do what we need to do because, to be perfectly honest, the only thing that matters is that we figure this out. And we will. Together, we will figure this all out. We will, because there is no choice at all.”
“Precisely.” He nodded. Reaching out, he touched her hand gently before pulling back. With a small smile, he went back to the pictures and his notes he was making. Which he hadn’t mentioned yet, but since she couldn’t look at the pictures, it was probably for the best.
It was a time later when Lilly put her data pad down and looked to him. “All right, I’m done.” She said and shook her head. “And no, I mean it. I’m done. If I look at these files once more, I will likely hurt someone.”
“That’s nice,” he commented, squinting at an image. Lifting a magnification loupe, he pressed his eye to it over the image. “Huh, interesting,” he murmured, making a note and putting a sticky arrow on the image. Then he looked at her and blinked. “What? Why are you killing people?”
“I can’t look at these files anymore. I really can’t. I swear to you, if I look at them one more time, I am going to hurt someone.” She didn’t move because she knew what he was looking at and asked, “What have you found? You have something there, or it wouldn’t have taken you so long to say something to me.”
She got another couple of blinks before he nodded. “Uh, yeah. I found something in a couple photos. But I need them to rework them digitally so that I can get a decent look at them. Currently the focus is all wrong, it’s on the foreground instead of the background. So—” He picked up the ones he’d flagged and stuck them into a different folder. The others he put into the original folder, out of her sight, and got up. Taking her file and the original of his, he put them into the office safe. “Come on, let’s get out of here. I’ll drop this off at with the lab guys and see if they can rework things to let me see what’s in the background. If it’s what I think it is, we just got ourselves the clue of the century.”
She was glad that he wasn’t making her look at the images, but of course he wouldn’t because he loved her and would always do what he needed in order to make certain she was safe. Once he had everything locked behind the safe and the files handed off, she wrapped her arm around his middle and gave him a gentle squeeze. Looking up at him, she smiled, nodding as she did so. “Is this going to be okay?” she asked quietly. “What you found, will it help us get rid of whoever these monsters are preying on humans?”
“I don’t honestly know, but it’s a possibility. We’ll have to wait and see,” he said quietly. Squeezing her close, he grabbed up his jacket. “You ready?” he asked, flipping it over his arm. At her nod, he pressed a kiss to her hair and they headed out of the office and straight to the elevators.
“I’m ready.” She spoke aloud this time and moved in closer to him in the elevators. As soon as they stepped on, she once more felt that intense panic, that fear and clenched her hand at his side. “Ax,” she whispered and turned to press her face against his chest. “Feeling it again. I don’t like it,” she whispered. “Panic, fear—what the hell is happening to me?”
“Shh,” he whispered, pulling her closer to him. His arms wrapping her close, holding her tight. “I’ve got you, just breathe and listen to my heart. No one can hurt you, I won’t let them hurt you, promise.” One of his hands cupped the nape of her neck and warmed her suddenly chilled and clammy skin. His body was tense, though
, unlike earlier. Not a good sign.
She nodded against his chest and held onto him. Her eyes were closed. She was shaking and hated it. The fear was too much, she hated it, but with him being here and close to her she was feeling somewhat better. He was helping her relax and calm just by being there.
“Good, you’re doing good,” he whispered quietly. He was swaying, rocking her gently as they moved down through the building. “We’re almost to the tech guys. We’ll stop quick, I’ll tell them what I need and we’re out of here. No delays, sweetheart.”
“Sounds good. The sooner out of here, the better.” What set her off, though? She had been worried on the way up, felt better in his office, but when they hit the elevator again she freaked out. She hated this feeling. So desperately. She wanted her fucking life back!
The elevator stopped, thank God. Artaxias took her hand and, keeping her close, walked with her into tech heaven. Everyone in the technology division stopped and stared, Ax didn’t even let it phase him. “Give me a minute,” he said to her softly. Right, she couldn’t see the pictures, bad things happened when she looked at them. He left her near the door and headed for someone she couldn’t quite see because of his broad back blocking her view.
Lilly looked down at the floor and felt a little sick. She couldn’t look away though. She was entranced by the floor. The swirling patterns, the movement in the fibers. All of it. She couldn’t shake out of it and found herself biting her lower lip, hard. Sweat broke out on her forehead and she felt herself swaying slightly with vertigo. What the hell was wrong? In her mind she reached for Ax. Screaming for him almost.
He was there in the next instant, his hand forcing her chin up and his mouth crashing into hers. A hard, hot kiss with tongue and his body wrapping around hers. Full contact, perfect. He teased her into a fine fury of sexual need before drawing back to look at her. “Lil.” His eyes darted back and forth, searching hers. “I felt your panic and heard you scream in my head. What happened, love?”
“I think I just shit my pants,” one of the techs said weakly.
“Dude, I think I just had a heart attack. How the fuck did he move that fast?” another got out in a whimpering tone.
Lilly was shaking. Every single part of her body shook. “I just began to feel sick, I couldn’t look away from the floor and began to feel vertigo. Can we go home now, please?” She hated being weak, it pissed her off, but right now she couldn’t help herself and she was just that—weak.
He nodded but was looking down at the floor. “Son of a bitch,” he said. “Fucking hell.” He whipped his head around. “When did you get the new flooring in?” he snarled.
They all were staring at him, which was understandable. He had his fangs bared and looked ready to munch down on any of them immediately. “Three weeks ago,” someone finally offered up.
“Fuck.” He took her hand and tugged her toward the elevators. When they arrived he stepped in and then stopped. “Motherfucker,” he said, pushing her back out. “We’re taking the stairs down to the garage.”
She nodded and went right along with him. Her arm around his middle, she rested her head to his shoulder and kept her eyes closed until he told her that she could look. Finally, in the deep grey of the stairwell, she let out a breath. “What happened? Was it the floor? But why couldn’t we take the elevator?” She looked up and saw him still fully fanged out and touched her fingers to his lips lightly. “Hey, thank you.”
He let out a low growl but his teeth slid back out of view after a couple of deep breaths. “The floor in nearly every area we’ve been has the same designs built into them. The rugs, the tiles, everything,” he said through clenched teeth. He was getting pissed again, or maybe it was more accurate to say he was ramping back up again.
“What? When did that happen?” Crap, first the damn tattoos and now this? “How long did they have me to program me with all of this horseshit, and when?” She was getting angry now. “Just when did they have me?” She whispered the question again. It had to have been before she came to this area, had to have been during her transfer, right?
“I don’t know,” he said, staring into her eyes. “But we’re fucking going to find out. And we’re not going to stop until we find these assholes and I tear their still-beating hearts out of their chests with my bare hands. I’ve had enough of this shit. They have gone too far with attacking you in an everyday manner like this.”
“Good,” she said with a nod. She took a deep breath and then gave him another hug simply because she could. “I love you, Ax. I want to go home and stay there until the floors have been changed out, please?” She knew that they would be changed and gone over with a fine-tooth comb before she was allowed back in the office, and she was fine with that.
“I’ll be calling the captain as soon as we get home. There is no way I’m letting you back in this building, or anywhere, without checking it over thoroughly.” Taking her hand, he led her down the stairs. Thankfully it was down and not up, but even still, it was a long way to go in the chilly and narrow stairwell.
By the time they finally made the garage, Lilly was cursing herself for wearing the short-sleeved, thin shirt she had on. “Son of a bitch, the stairs are cold,” she muttered and didn’t even wait for him, she moved to wrap her arms around him and hugged him close. “Make me warmer.” It was a demand, one made with a grin.
Shrugging out of his jacket, he wrapped it around her shoulders, surrounding her in the scent that was all her Vhampire and leather. He also hugged her close to him and rubbed his hands over her back. “You should have said something sooner, Lilly. You know all you have to do is speak up, little one.”
“I know, but honestly I didn’t really feel it until we stopped moving.” It was easier when they were moving quickly down the stairs, but now that they stopped in the cold garage, she was cold. “Thank you for taking care of me.”
“You are my mate, of course I will look after you. Silly female.” He muttered the last with a dirty look to her. “Come, let’s get out of here and get you as far as we can from this crap. I want you home where we know you are safe.”
“Sounds good to me. Home sounds perfect. I can’t wait to get ourselves home so that we can poke Gavriel and make him wake up and then, if you want me to, I will cook for us.” And by that, she meant ordering in for them.
“You don’t cook, or so I seem to recall you mentioning,” he said, lifting a brow. Then he rolled his eyes. “Of course you would order in,” he said, shaking his head. Taking her hand in his, he walked with her to the truck.
She grinned and nodded. “You bet I would order in. I know this pizza place that delivers. It’s so freaking good.” She loved pizza. Carbs. Hell yes. “Oh now I want pizza. Lots of meat. Yummers.” Okay, so she had a one-track mind sometimes. Most times. But at least she wasn’t thinking of what had just happened to them, so that was good.
“You do know that unless you make it yourself, you really have no clue what’s on it, right?” he asked once they were moving and on the road. “But if you feel the need to indulge in a reckless gamble with the general populations food preparation, go for it.”
“This is true but I don’t care. I really love their pizza, so I think we should get it. And yes, I feel the need to indulge in a reckless gamble, because I trust the pizza place. That’s what it boils down to, trust. Just as I trust you as well, darling man.”
“Then I say, gamble away,” he told her with chuckle. “I take it you’ve had the food there before enough to know they are a high-caliber establishment.” He shot her another look just in time for her to give a nod. A soft grunt and he just shook his head slightly.
“Yes. Yes, I have had the food there before, and it is very good. I’ve also seen inside of their kitchens and know just how clean they are, so we won’t be poisoned, promise,” she assured him. “So come on, pizza. Please?”
“Fine, you may order in pizza,” he said. “But we’re calling it in for delivery. I am not going near a pizza place.
The scents there are enough to put me into overload and not the good kind, if there is a good kind.”
“Deal.” Lilly smiled and reached out to touch him again. “Thank you. For giving in to me. Do you want something other than pizza? Or are you going to cook yourself something when we get home?” She hated that he would not like something she loved so much.
“I have no need to eat any actual food for the next couple of days. You can enjoy your pizza in peace, and I will watch you enjoying it. And no, you don’t need to feel bad for any reason. Remember, I don’t require food and can’t eat that often.”
“Good point.” Lilly smiled and felt her cheeks heat as she asked. “Will you bite me again? Feed from me again? I have to tell you, before you answer, just how much I love it when you feed from me like you do.” Because they were always making love when he fed from her.
Artaxias shot her a look and rolled his eyes. “I know you have ulterior motives and yet, for some insane reason, I cannot find fault with your plan.” Slowing, he pulled into their drive and wound his way up to the house. Parking, he shut off the engine and turned toward her slightly.
“That’s a very good thing. After I have eaten and showered, when we are cuddled up in bed, we will get to have some fun and you will get to feed?” she asked hopefully. “Because I like it. A lot.” Okay so she liked it more than a lot. She loved having him feeding from her.
“I think you may be addicted to it,” he said softly. “Not that I mind in the least, but we do need to ensure you keep up your blood count if I continue to feed from you. We’ll have to put you on a few supplements, possibly. Because, in time, it would take a toll on you.”
“We will do whatever it is that we need to do. I am just plain addicted to you. Period. I’m addicted to Gav biting me, you feeding from me. Both of you loving me.” Who wouldn’t love a man that would give her anything at all that she wanted, at anytime at all that she wanted it? She would do the same for him and for Gav as well.