Crisis Alert (Divine Justice, 3)

by Mary Abshire

  “You need to rest,” the doctor said. “You survived a horrific beating. The worst I’ve seen since the last outbreak.”

  “Most of your bones were broken. Your skull had a fracture. Your spine…” Gordon shook his head. “If you weren’t a werewolf you would be paralyzed or dead right now.”

  The memory of everything flooded him. He closed his eyelids. Reggie had hit him repeatedly with the bat. The evil master particularly enjoyed hitting one side of his face. Zale had almost passed out twice. With each burst of new pain he thought about Anna. He would see her again. Somehow he knew it, whether in this life or the next. Reggie could beat his body a million times over, but Zale’s love for Anna would stand strong. He would never betray her or the people who aimed to save mankind.

  Zale opened his eyes. “What time is it?” His throat felt dry and scratchy.

  “Close to four in the afternoon,” Gordon said.

  “Can I have some water?” Zale asked.

  Gordon veered his gaze to the doctor. Following a nod from the doc, Gordon walked around his bed and then came to stand by a table not far from Zale.

  “I wasn’t sure you’d wake up so soon,” Gordon said as he poured liquid from a pitcher into a cup. “We had to sedate you twice.”

  “What? How did I get here? What happened to Anna?” He took the cup from Gordon and then sipped on the cool water.

  “Aziel had called me and said he was sending a team. They’d found you and some of my agents were hurt. I called agents in the field and had them rush to meet Aziel’s team. They found Derek dead. Trevor, Stanley, Paul, and Justin were injured. We treated them and then sent them home. You had sustained the worst injuries by far. We found you in your wolf form and you didn’t want to come with us even though you could barely walk, let alone stand. We had to sedate you to bring you here.”

  Sadness touched him for the loss of Derek. He’d been a good agent. On a positive note, at least the others had survived. The demons could have easily killed all of them.

  “Am I at the pyramids?” Zale asked.

  Gordon nodded. “Once we got you here, the doctors had to wake you to get you to change. And that took six of us. Do you remember any of it?”

  Zale looked up at the tiled ceiling. He’d been in so much pain and his thoughts had been foggy. But he didn’t forget seeing Anna. He’d never forget the kiss she gave him before she left to find Reggie. “I remember hearing the gunfire. The shots had lasted a few minutes before men arrived. I recall trying to leave and I had trouble walking. Men were telling me to stay put and change. I tried to bite the hands reaching for me. Someone stabbed me and I felt a cool sensation. I must have blacked out soon after that.”

  “Do you recall when we woke you?” Gordon asked.

  Zale swallowed. “It’s almost like a dream. I see but mostly hear bits and pieces. I remember you yelling at me to shift. And the floor felt icy cold.”

  Gordon chuckled. “You hear that doc? He remembers the cold floor and me yelling at him.”

  The doctor stood at the end of the bed, writing on a clipboard. He grinned while he nodded.

  “I couldn’t see anything clearly,” Zale said, handing the empty cup to Gordon.

  Gordon set the cup on the table. “You were laying on the floor after you shifted. We gave you another sedative so the doctors could work on you. You needed a transfusion and fluids to stimulate the healing process. Changing helped, but it wasn’t enough. You’re lucky to be here.”

  Luck had nothing to do with it. The woman he loved, his mate, had found him. She saved him in many ways.

  “Anna, where is she? What happened to her?” Zale asked, his heart rapping faster.

  “Aziel said DS agents recovered her and took her to the headquarters. She needs time to heal, but he expects she’ll be up tonight. He and I both agree you two should take a night or two to rest,” Gordon said.

  Zale’s heart calmed. His mate had survived. He couldn’t wait to see her again.

  The blurriness in his one eye created a sharp pain in his head.

  “And the masters?” Zale asked.

  “She exorcised one. I guess she had to kill the other.”

  Pride swelled within him. She’d claimed her retribution. She’d finally sent Christopher and his partner to Hell. Zale had never doubted her. He’d held faith she would get the job done. But he hadn’t taken into account she would get seriously hurt. She was a skilled fighter, the best he’d seen for a vampire. If she required time to recuperate, then she’d run into trouble.

  “I need to see her,” Zale said.

  “In case you hadn’t noticed, the sun is out.” Gordon gestured to the window.

  “Tonight. I need to be there when she wakes.” He lifted his aching body.

  “Whoa, whoa,” Gordon said, reaching to stop Zale.

  The doctor tossed the clipboard on the chair. “Mr. Wallace, you need to stay in bed.” He strode toward Zale on the opposite side of Gordon.

  “I can’t.” Zale lifted his arm and studied the tubes plugged into him.

  “You can and you will,” the doctor said. “I will inject another sedative if I have to.”

  “Please, you don’t understand,” Zale said.

  “Get the nurse,” the doctor said to Gordon.

  His boss headed for the open door.

  Zale’s anxiety rose. One of the machines nearby started beeping more.

  “I have to be there when she wakes up. I need to see her,” Zale said as the doctor nudged him back toward the angled bed.

  Zale’s head began to throb from the noisy machine and the sharp pain piercing his skull from his eye.

  “You need to rest. The sun won’t go down for several hours,” the doctor said.

  “She’s my mate. I have to see her,” Zale said.

  “And you will, in time,” the doctor said.

  A blond-haired man wearing blue scrubs strode into the room carrying something small in his hands. Gordon trailed behind him. The nurse stopped next to the doctor.

  “How much?” the man in blue asked.

  “One milligram,” the doctor said.

  “Please, you don’t have to do this,” Zale said.

  “Zale, relax. Get your strength back so you can walk out of here to see her. I’m sure you’d rather do that than be in a wheelchair,” Gordon said, standing at the end of the bed.

  A small sting in his arm captured his attention. The doctor held a syringe to his arm.

  “I don’t want to sleep anymore,” Zale said.

  The doctor removed the needle. “This will help you rest.”

  “Will it cure my headache?” Zale closed his eyes, hoping the throb in his head would go away.

  “It will ease the pain,” the doctor said.

  Keeping his lids shut, he started to feel lightheaded. Slowly, the pounding and sting from his one eye lessened. The beeping behind him slowed too. It didn’t take long for his thoughts to drift away.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Anna woke feeling cold, thirsty, and alone. Curled on her side with layers of blankets on her, she dreamed of Zale’s big warm body pressed to hers. She relished his heat and the love he gave her. The one night she’d spent with him had been heaven on Earth. She craved more of the noble werewolf.

  She pushed the covers off and then grabbed her cell from the nearby nightstand. According to the time, the sun had set twenty minutes ago. She wondered if Zale had woken up from the sedatives the agents had given him. Was he feeling better? Had he healed? Most of all, she wanted to know if he remembered a demon possessing him.

  Aziel had told her UoJ agents had showed up with the DS team. For reasons Aziel didn’t know or say, Zale had given his peers trouble. He refused to cooperate with them, so they’d drugged him to take him back to their headquarters for medical care. The last she’d heard before sunrise was the doctors were treating him. She prayed he would recover from all his injuries.

 
; The keys to his car sat on the nightstand. While she’d been in the clinic receiving transfusions, Rachel informed her an agent had put them in her room. The only other items in the room belonging to her were her boots and leather jacket with holes. Her clothes and underwear had been ripped and drenched in blood when she’d arrived. Needless to say, they ended up in the trash. The clinic’s spare supply of clothes came in handy, but the small gray t-shirt and sweatpants hung loose on her. Not to mention she looked hideous wearing them.

  Not caring about appearances, she grabbed his keys. She needed to see the man she loved, to know he was all right, to hear his voice, and touch his warm flesh. After strapping on her knee-high boots, she snatched her jacket and then headed for the door. Yeah, she looked horrible. Maybe she’d earn a smile from Zale.

  She stopped in the break room. The empty office would soon be buzzing with activity. She had to hurry to avoid many agents seeing her. Without a doubt, they’d laugh at her appearance.

  As the first bag warmed in the microwave, the phone in her pocket chimed. She fished it out and found Aziel’s name on the screen. She tapped it.

  “I’m up,” she said.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Thirsty, a little sore, mostly anxious.” She avoided mentioning the clothes. She was grateful to have something instead of nothing.

  “I’m sure you are. Drink two bags before you do anything. You should have more every couple of hours to replenish your system completely.” He sounded like a father.

  The microwave beeped.

  “I’m about my drink first bag now.” She grabbed the bag and then punctured it with one of her canines.

  “Are you planning to visit Zale?”

  “Of course. Have you heard from Gordon?” She poured the fluid into a glass.

  “Not since we spoke an hour before sunrise.”

  “He didn’t send you a message or anything? I would’ve thought he might update you near sundown.”

  “If you recall, things were chaotic this morning. I’d venture to guess they stayed busy during the day too.”

  Anna, Victor, and Rachel had spent time in the clinic receiving transfusions and having bullets extracted in the early morning hours. Meanwhile, reports were coming in saying men and women all over the city were dazed and confused. Local law enforcement scrambled to assist citizens. Many even showed up at hospitals. The DS and UoJ hotlines were ringing all the time with vampires and other supernatural creatures noticing the change. The hotlines also collected information from many vampires who’d noticed demons questioning what had happened. It seemed Anna’s exorcism had a big impact. The DS and UoJ were going to busy for a long time.

  “Look at the bright side, we have new intel to go after more demons,” she said before she began downing the red fluid.

  “There is no dark or negative side to what you did, Anna. You saved many lives. The demon population has declined. How much? We don’t know yet. But it won’t increase the way it had.”

  The two masters she’d returned to Hell must have brought over hundreds of demons in the last twelve months. They too had left with the masters. Now, humans had regained their souls and could never be possessed again. They had no memories of their actions or the evil that had been in them, hence their state of confusion. The demons who’d spent over a year in their human hosts remained in the city. The DS would hunt them, but at least she’d sent a couple hundred where they belonged.

  A touch of sadness coursed through her for having killed Reggie. She’d continue to pray for forgiveness. She tried to remind herself her action had returned many evil souls to the place they belonged. Moreover, she’d claimed retribution for Glenn and other vampires. She’d finally served justice to those responsible for his demise. She focused more on the benefits of her deed and a sense of peace eased her conscious.

  “I’m going to honor your request to rest tonight, but I am leaving to see Zale. I have to know how he’s recovering,” she said.

  “As your boss, I’m glad to hear you’ll follow my instructions.”

  She almost chuckled. “Can you do a favor for me?”

  “What?”

  “Can you send Gordon a message telling him I’m going to leave in ten minutes to see Zale? I don’t want every agent on the premises giving me the evil eye when I show up at the pyramids.”

  “I’ll send him a message.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Check in with me later. I’d like to know how he’s doing. And let me know…”

  He didn’t need to finish the sentence. “I’ll let you know. Hopefully the demon didn’t make it into him.”

  “Gordon will need to be informed. The pack he belongs to would need to know too.”

  “I’ll keep you posted.”

  “Get some rest.”

  Anna lowered the cell and then set it on the counter. As she finished the glass of blood, her stomach churned. The thought of him being possessed for even a minute would cause irreparable damage. She’d do anything to help him stay sane, but watching him struggle for the rest of his life would break her heart. The man deserved to live a happy life with kind and loving thoughts, not ones filled with malevolent memories.

  She set the second bag in the microwave. After she entered the time, the machine hummed with electricity. Taps on the floor in the office grew louder and seemed to be heading her way.

  Rachel walked in dressed in jeans and colorful blouse with roses. A black jacket concealed most of her shirt. She carried a plastic bag in her hand.

  “What are you doing here?” Anna asked. “Don’t you have the night off too?”

  Rachel stopped and handed the bag to her. “I knew you wouldn’t have clothes and you’d want to see Zale first thing. My yoga pants are probably too long, but they should fit you better than those ugly sweatpants. I put a womanly t-shirt in there too.”

  The surprise couldn’t have come at a better time. Anna threw her arms around Rachel. “You’re an angel. Thank you so much for thinking of me. You must have been flying on the interstate to get here so fast.”

  Rachel chuckled. “Anything for you. You’re my hero. I hope I can accomplish as much as you.”

  Anna stepped back. Tears began to fill her eyes. The woman she’d found in the ‘80s had transformed into a valuable kick-ass agent. “I believe you will. You went above and beyond last night. How are you feeling?”

  “Sore and thirsty.”

  The microwave beeped. “Do you want this bag? I can go change and then heat up another one.”

  “No, that’s okay. I’m going back home. I’ll drink there.”

  “You’re thirsty. Take this one. I’ll heat up another when I get back,” Anna said as she walked away.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. Do it. Be back soon.”

  Hearing others enter the office, Anna ran back to the room she’d been using as her temporary home. As soon as she entered, she dropped the bag on the bed and then started undressing. The jacket came off first. She tossed it on the bed and then lifted the gray shirt off her. She dropped it on the floor. Once she removed her boots, she left her sweatpants on the ground too.

  She pulled up the black yoga pants. Although long, they fit her well. She slid the pink shirt over her head. The top fit a little loose, which was a good thing considering her breasts would bounce without a bra. Hurrying, she slid on her boots. She snatched her jacket before she left the room, hoping it would be for the last time.

  Rachel withdrew a bag from the microwave as Anna strode into the room. “I fixed your drink.”

  Anna slid her arms into the sleeves of her jacket. “Thanks.”

  Rachel handed the drink to her and then lifted her half empty glass. “To the DS.”

  “Amen. To the DS and UoJ.” Anna tapped her glass with Rachel’s.

  Her phone chimed while she downed the crimson fluid. The screen showed a message from Aziel saying he’d sent word to Gordon. The dire
ctor would meet her at the check in desk in the middle pyramid.

  “Are you going to see him now?” Rachel asked.

  “Yeah. I need to know he’s okay.” She finished the rest of her drink.

  “You two make a great couple. I’m so happy for you.”

  Anna gave Rachel another hug. “Thank you.”

  “Stop it. You’re going to make me cry.”

  Anna chuckled as she let her go. She grabbed the cell from the counter. “I’ll touch base with you later. Go home and rest.”

  “I will. Do you need a ride?”

  “No, I’m taking Zale’s car.”

  “Oh, good idea.”

  “Thanks again.” She tapped her friend on the shoulder. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  “Don’t worry, he’ll be fine,” Rachel said as Anna walked away.

  Anna hoped she was right.

  The drive from downtown to the north side took too long. Clear night skies encouraged men and women to stay outdoors and on the streets. Frustrated from an accident on the interstate near the exit she needed, she gripped the wheel and considered taking the spare lane to get to the ramp. Patience was not one of her better qualities. But she waited like the other cars until she was close enough to reach the exit without driving on the side for more than a few seconds.

  Cars packed the surface parking lot for the pyramids. She found it surprising the UoJ didn’t have a garage for the winter months. After finding an empty spot in the back, she closed her jacket over her breasts and took off running for the center pyramid

  Uniformed guards at the front desk watched through the glass doors as Anna switched from running to speed walking toward the entrance. She probably looked like some terrorist because she held her jacket together, which was not a great first impression to the agency who tracked down criminal vampires.

  She strode past the front door and the guard with trimmed brown hair stepped approached her. He held his hand on the stun gun attached to his hip. “I’m Anna Collins. Gordon is expecting me.”

  “Stay right there,” he said, keeping his hand on his weapon.

  The other guard at the desk lifted a cell to his ear. “Anna Collins is here, sir.”