“What is he doing here?” she demanded as soon as we were alone.
I unhooked her fingers from my arm and answered, “Uh, he’s back.”
“Back?”
“For good.” I smiled really big to show this made me happy.
She scowled. “You didn’t tell me you were seeing him again. When did this happen?”
“Recently. Very recently…like a couple of days ago. It was a surprise for all of us.” I took her hands in mine and pleaded, “Dani, I love you. You’re my best friend…my sister. But you have to trust me on this. Sean and I are okay now.”
She started to respond but then paused and glanced down at my locket. “What on earth…?” Distracted, she reached out and picked up my locket. She dropped it like it burned her and shook her fingers.
“Ouch! What’s with the locket? It’s glowing.”
Her fingertips were red.
“Uh, magic?” I laughed it off with a joke and a shrug.
“Uh-huh.”
She narrowed her eyes doubtfully and added, “You know I’m not stupid. Don’t bullshit me.”
“It’s no big deal. It’s just a locket.”
“Yeah, sure it is. I don’t believe you, but go ahead and keep your secrets. One day you’ll regret it. Let’s go back to the others. I’m sure Aric is ready to be rescued,” Dani said.
“Oh, you bitches don’t need to leave so soon. We just got here.” A familiar cold voice froze me in my tracks and I rolled my eyes. Again?
I turned to see Scott Flynn and three others spread out across the back entrance to the patio. Scott’s eyes were hard as he pushed off from the wall and stalked towards us. His thick dark hair and deep-set brown eyes were still the same. The expression on his face was new though. Psychopath? Newborn vampire? Demon?
Pick one; they all fit.
I hadn’t seen him for a long time. He looked even more unstable than he did last year. I hadn’t been in town much and he’d been in and out of jail. Unfortunately he’d survived his latest stint in jail. Damn, his timing sucked. I swiveled to the other exit and it was blocked too. Not a surprise. We were trapped on the enclosed patio. Instead of screaming for help, I faced Scott as he made his way towards me. I planted my feet and got ready to hand his head to him. I was more than ready and it showed in my face. He took a good look at my expression and lost a little of his swagger. He slowed down and moved with more caution. I cracked my knuckles and stretched.
Purring obscenely, he said, “I’ve missed you. You and me have some catching up to do. You’re looking good.” His eyes raked my body and settled insolently on my crotch. He spread his hands in a gesture of goodwill and warned, “You might want to play nice.”
One of his thuggy friends barked a mean laugh at that. “Yeah or we all get a crack at you when he’s done!”
I looked at that one and said, “Shut the hell up, moron.” Dani gasped and dug her nails into my arm. Out of the side of my mouth, I said, “Let go of me and stay back. I’ve got this. Yell for Aric.”
Dani opened her mouth to scream, but one of them grabbed her around the waist and clapped a hand over her mouth. She struggled and kicked at him, but he pressed his arm against her throat and she froze. I watched out of the corner of my eye as he held her against him and groped her with his free hand. Her eyes were spitting fire but her face was turning red as she lost oxygen. I wanted to yell for Dec but didn’t want Dani to learn their secret so I sent an SOS to Killian instead. Oh, please be paying attention!
Killian! It’s Flynn. Hurry!
Scott took advantage of my hesitation and lunged at me. I stepped to the side and he lumbered forward missing me completely. I swung around to face him and kicked him squarely in the jaw. His head snapped back and he staggered. I sensed another guy coming from behind me and dove forward to take Scott’s legs out from under him. He landed hard on his back with a whoosh. Before he could react, I kicked him in the face, hopefully breaking his nose. Blood splattered everywhere. The sound of screaming broke through my adrenaline rush. Dani’s captor had pinned her against the ground and was trying to shove his hand down her shorts. She was screaming bloody murder so he punched her in the face.
In seconds, the patio was crowded. Sean, Killian, Dec, and Aric all burst through the doors at the same time. Aric took one look at Dani and went berserk. He threw himself into the guy and knocked him sideways onto the ground. Dec had to drag Aric off the guy to keep him from killing him. Once the guy was out cold, Dec and Aric led a sobbing Dani out to Aric’s car. Two of the smarter criminals melted into the darkness while I held Scott Flynn in place with a boot against his throat and Sean stood behind his head. Blood was pouring out of his nose and his eyes looked up at me furiously. He wasn’t afraid. He was waiting me out.
I put a little pressure on his throat and he grunted in pain. “Not so tough now?” I mimicked Killian’s feral smile and dug my heel in a little harder. His eyes showed fear then.
“That’s what I thought!” I smirked and put a smidgeon more weight on my heel.
“Mica! No killing!” Killian ordered, amused.
Sean squatted down and snarled, “Yeah, don’t kill him. I have a promise to keep.” He leaned into Scott’s face and said something too low for me to hear. Whatever it was, it had the desired effect; Scott frantically turned his face away.
I laughed out loud. Scott was getting a very close up view of the unusual eyes that announced, without a doubt, that Sean wasn’t wholly human. His eyes burned in their sockets when he was in killing-mode, or soldier-mode, as I called it. It was a Primani thing. It happened when they were fighting demons, teleporting, or just really mad. It was an involuntary reaction to the saol that they used. It still scared the hell out of me even though I was perfectly safe with them. Apparently Scott didn’t feel safe if the kitten sounds he was making were any indication. I laughed harder.
“Get the fuck up.” Sean hauled Scott to his feet with one hand. He shoved him into Killian who pulled both arms behind his back. Before I could say another word, Sean pulled me to him and kissed me with such intensity that my whole body glowed and threw off waves of searing heat. My eyes burned like fire and everything seemed oddly bright like I was wearing sunglasses. He’d turned me into a road flare…Scott’s eyes went huge and he started shaking violently. He tried to turn his head away but Killian forced him to look.
Understanding the game now, I leisurely turned to face Scott again. “Touch me again and I’ll light you on fire.”
He blanched and fell to his knees.
“Oh, you’ll burn.”
Killian laughed at Sean’s horrified expression. “Dude, you’ve got no idea!”
Chapter 4: Scented
SUNNY DANI WASN'T SMILING today. A shadow passed over her eyes as she stared out the window. She had no bruises on the outside, but I sensed her pain and my heart twisted in sympathy. She was the sweetest soul I knew in this crazy new world of mine. I wanted her to stay innocent. I hadn’t told her anything about the earlier run-ins with Scott to keep her from worrying. She’d had no idea that we had a history. She turned back to me and sighed.
“How are you feeling?” I whispered.
Her mom was listening outside her bedroom door. I didn’t want to say too much. Instead, I handed her some cookies I baked and tried a smile.
She frowned back at me.
“I know you’re worried about me. Don’t be. I’m not the first girl to be attacked by a stupid guy. I’m just glad Aric got there before he could…well, you know.” Her hand fluttered and dropped back to her lap. She tapped her fingers against the side of her leg and pressed her lips together.
Her sadness was breaking my heart.
“I’m so sorry! It happened so fast! I can’t believe they dragged you into this.”
Usually Scott and his merry band of psychopaths tried to drag me someplace private for their entertainment. His thug friend must be new in town.
Dani looked me in the eye and said, “This has happened
before, hasn’t it? You and Scott seemed to have a rhythm going.” Her voice was soft but laced with underlying steel that sent an alarm bell off inside my head.
I squirmed in my chair next to her. “Uh, no, it’s not. He just won’t leave me alone. Sean and Killian have beaten the shit out of him a couple of times but he keeps coming back. The guys have been training me for the past few years. I was ready for him this time. I don’t need help any more. One of these days I’ll probably have to kill him.”
Dani’s eyes narrowed. “You say that so casually; like you’ve done it before.”
“I’m not trying to be casual. But I’m not going to let the psychopath kill me. That’s what he wants and I’m not going to let him do it.”
“Okay,” she paused and asked, “And what about Sean? And Dec? There’s something not right about them.”
Yeeeeah...so not going to go there with her.
Stiffening, I sat back and crossed my arms. I knew I looked defensive but I had to draw the line. This wasn’t something I could share, even with Dani.
“They are who they are. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Suddenly she leaned forward and grabbed my wrist. “You’re still lying to me! Do you really think I can’t tell? You’re my best friend; I know you better than you think I do. How can you keep secrets from me?”
Okay...not sadness after all.
As her nails dug into my palm, I realized I had let her down. I was wrong...I’d put her in danger and not even thought about it. I sucked. Damn.
“Okay! I’m a horrible person! I’m sorry for getting you hurt! I’m not trying to lie to you, but there are things I can’t tell you. They’re not my secrets to tell. Please try to understand that.”
Unpeeling her fingers, I got up and looked out the window. It was beginning to get dark outside. Dani’s mom was making dinner down in the kitchen and I should be getting home. This conversation couldn’t go much further anyway.
“Look, I hate this. I love you but I can’t say anything else. Is there anything I can do for you? Other than spill my guts?” I hugged her and she stiffened but then hugged me back.
“I love you too, but I’m still pissed at you. I don’t care about that idiot guy. I care that you’re involved in something that you won’t tell me about. That hurts and I don’t like it. I’ll let it go for now, but you’re gonna have to tell me sooner or later.”
I looked into her pretty grey eyes and sensed she was more disappointed than angry now. That was better, but not much. I still felt like a bitch.
“We’ll see. Let Aric spoil you for a while. That’s what he thinks he needs to do. If you don’t let him help you, he’ll be crushed.” With that last piece of advice, I headed back to the farmhouse.
As I pulled up to the driveway, I noticed all the lights were off. Hmm, that’s strange. Where was everyone? I parked the car and shut the door quietly. Before heading inside, I looked around the outside. No sign of an attack--no shattered windows, nothing blown up, nothing unusual at all. Huh. Reassured, I went in through the kitchen door. Domino greeted me and trotted along beside me, her tail low to the floor. The house was quiet. The kitchen was spotless. No one had cooked in it today. That was odd. The guys ate a lot. It wasn’t like them to clean up the kitchen so well. Uneasy now, I crept through the living room back to the bedrooms. I listened for voices or music but the house was deathly silent. I was getting more nervous the further into the house I walked. I peeked into the bedrooms as I passed by. Dec’s was empty of life but a disaster as usual. He never worried about putting clothes away or making his bed. Life was too short.
I hesitated at Killian’s door with my hand on the knob. I hadn’t been inside this room in a very long time and the last time had been disturbing. I opened the door and peered into the darkness. His scent stopped me in the doorway. Woodsy and musky, it was unique to him and conjured up a vivid image of the last time I was here. I groaned and closed my eyes to stop the memories. They came anyway.
That night, I had been dreaming about walking down the endless hallway again. In my dream, I tried to open the doors and they were locked. They were locked until I came to this door. The door had swung open and I had walked blindly into the room. In front of me was a soft glowing light and I reached out and touched it with my hand.
Minutes later, I woke up flat on my back with stars in my eyes. My brain struggled to adjust to being smacked against the wood floor. On top of that, my skin tingled unpleasantly all over and I was drooling. Killian, with a sheet draped loosely around his hips, crouched beside me looking worried. He was shaking me by the shoulder.
“What happened?” It felt like I was hit with a stun gun.
“You were sleepwalking. You, uh, startled me. I’m so sorry, babe.”
He pulled me up and I flopped over. My legs didn’t seem to work just yet. The natural response to falling is to grab onto something, right? Is it my fault I missed Killian altogether but did manage to snag a fistful of the sheet on my way to the floor?
My face flamed again just thinking about it. Good Lord, was there no escaping the memory? It took months to get the image of Killian’s amused face out of my mind. Then there’s the rest of him…Focus. Focus. I took a deep breath. Where is he now? Not in the room; that’s for sure. I backed out of the room and went to my own. It was empty too. I switched on the lamp and saw a note on the nightstand. It was from Sean. I read it once quickly and then again more slowly. It was signed, ‘Always, Sean.’
Well, hmm. What to do now? They would be gone for a while and I was to stay put and not get into trouble. Huh. Why do they always assume I’m going to get into trouble? It’s not like I go looking for it! Domino had been lying on the bed watching me with interest. Now she straightened her ears and focused her attention on the note.
Well, now what?
“You want to know what the note says?”
She wagged her tail.
Tapping the folded paper against my leg, I explained, “Mission. Alex says they’ve got a lead on Dagin’s new lab and they need to go check it out. They’ll be out for a week or more. It’s status quo for me and you, Princess. Looks like we get to hold down the fort again. Are you up for it?”
She yawned and daintily stepped down from the bed. She stopped under the alarm pad and looked up. I can’t do it alone.
Breathe in, breathe out…I sucked in hot thick air and grimaced. Mile three was going to kill me today. I was struggling to keep my pace and finish. Sweat ran into my eyes and burned like acid. Damn, it was freaky hot today! Domino loped easily beside me as we passed the mile marker. She wasn’t even panting hard; that’s all the proof I need. She’s not a real dog. A real dog would be hot too.
“You know you’re not a real dog. Admit it!”
She rolled her eyes at me and kept trotting along. Amateur!
Laughing and sucking at more air, I slowed to a walk and slugged some water. I poured her a bit in my palm and squatted so she could drink. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a man watching me. He was standing next to a dark blue car in the parking lot. Nonchalantly, I turned so I could see him better while I poured some more water out.
“Keep drinking,” I ordered the dog.
She licked at my palm and lifted an ear.
“The guy in the khaki shorts and red polo is watching us.”
I poured more water and glanced up under my lashes. Yep, he was still there and still looking our direction. His mouth was moving just a little bit. Ah, he was using a mic. Okay, either he was a cop, a terrorist, or someone on Dagin’s payroll. None of those options were great. He was dressed in pleated khakis and a polo shirt. He didn’t fit my image of a terrorist, so that left cop or demon. Would a demon bother with designer labels? I wasn’t sure. Either way, not good. Would he follow me openly or try to hide it? Let’s see.
I led Domino back to my car and took my time getting situated. I glanced around to see if he was still paying attention but he was gone. I swiveled around in all directions but he w
asn’t there. Did I imagine that whole thing? No, surely not. I pointed the car towards the house wishing the guys were home. They hadn’t come back yet, and I wasn’t expecting them for a few more days. I drove the long way home and kept an eye out for a tail. If someone was following me, they were very good. I didn’t see anyone. Finally I headed home and parked inside the garage for once. Slipping inside, I set the house alarm and called Sean. He answered on the third ring.
“What’s up?” He sounded distracted.
“I love you too! And oh, by the way, I think someone was watching me today.”
“Don’t be a smart ass. What happened?”
I explained about the polo shirt guy in the park. After listening to my story, Sean was quiet for a minute. “Well, what do you think?” I asked.
“It’s possible that you’re under surveillance. But the question is by whom. Dagin? Maybe…but that would be unusual for him. The truce is over so he’d probably just kill you if he saw you by yourself. His business partners shouldn’t know about you. Um, my guess would be feds.”
Yikes!
“Feds? What would they want with me?” I checked the mirror for a sniper beam in the middle of my forehead and stepped away from the window.
“You told me about the men who were at the house in Vermont. They wore uniforms and had NVGs and night scopes on their rifles. They were planning to raid the compound while we were inside. Bad guys wouldn’t do that. They would’ve just stormed it and shot the place up. So those guys you saw were most likely legitimate law enforcement. Local cops wouldn’t have jurisdiction over arms dealing ops. Could be FBI or even Homeland Security…hmm…”
The Lost Soul Trilogy (Primani Book 5) Page 31