Ember (The Seeker Series Book 1)

by Ditter Kellen

  Being the lead epidemiologist for Winchester Industries had become Henry’s proverbial crutch, and he spent entirely too much time alone at the lab.

  Abbie worried about him constantly and planned evenings such as the one they had tonight to spend quality time together. It didn’t always work. She knew he saw her mother every time he looked into his daughter’s eyes. The exact replica of the only woman he’d ever loved.

  The trill of a phone broke the silence, and her father excused himself to take the call.

  Work, no doubt, Abbie thought, taking a bite of the burger she’d just made to her liking.

  He reappeared a moment later with a guilty look in his eyes. “That was the lab, honey. They need me to come in.”

  “What could be so important that it can’t wait until morning?”

  He avoided her gaze. “I’m not sure, but I’ll call you later. Don’t wait up. It’s going to be a late night.”

  Something in his voice kicked her curiosity up a notch. He never could hide things well, and the whole no eye contact? Yeah, he was definitely keeping something from her.

  “I’ll come with you.” She pushed her plate aside and stood.

  “Nonsense. Stay and eat your heart attack on a bun. You worked a twelve-hour shift at the hospital today.”

  Abbie had worked at Winchester Industries with her father for several years and often assisted him in the lab before she’d been unceremoniously laid off due to supposed budget cuts.

  She knew the higher ups had purposefully kept things from her during her time working in the lab, but whatever Henry hid from her now had to be awfully big for him to outright lie to his only daughter.

  And she had no doubt he evaded the truth by the way his left eye twitched. That little trademark had always given him away. “What are you not telling me?”

  He pursed his lips. “Okay, you got me. I didn’t want to have to say this, honey, but you are adopted.”

  A chuckle bubbled up before she could stop it. She stood on tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the chin. “That explains a whole hell of a lot.”

  “You look so much like your mother, Abbigail. She had the same hazel eyes and dark hair. Her butt wasn’t quite as big though.”

  Abbie playfully smacked him on the arm before stepping back. “I inherited the infamous booty from you, Henry.”

  She knew he didn’t like her to call him Henry any more than she appreciated him referring to her as Abbigail. They were incorrigible teases, but it was their way.

  “I really do have to run, sweetie.”

  “At least let me pack up your food to take with you, or you won’t eat.”

  He nodded and began gathering his work paraphernalia while she bagged up his dinner.

  What are you up to, Henry?

  Abbie followed him to the car and held the door open as he deposited his things on the passenger seat.

  “You are welcome to stay here tonight, Abbie. Jax would love the company.”

  “I probably will. If I leave, I’ll feed him before I go.”

  He gave her a two-finger salute and slid behind the wheel.

  Abbie stepped back as the door closed and the engine roared to life. He backed out of the drive without another glance in her direction.

  She waited until his tail lights disappeared around the corner before going back inside to put food out for Jax. He followed her around with a rubber ball in his mouth, bumping into her legs. The big German shepherd had been with Henry for nearly ten years and had become part of the family.

  “You know what’s going on, don’t you, boy?”

  His tail wagged in response from the attention.

  “Wanna give me a clue? No? I didn’t think so. You are a male after all.” She snagged the ball from his jaws and tossed it across the room, grinning as he bounded after it.

  After a quick shower, Abbie brushed her teeth and strolled to her old bedroom in search of something to wear. Henry kept the room exactly as Abbie had left it before she’d gone off to college, right down to the blue pom-poms hanging from the bedpost.

  She dressed in a pair of jeans and a black tank top, pulled her long dark hair back in a ponytail, and made haste cleaning up the mess from their earlier dinner.

  Grabbing her keys, she switched off the lights and left the house.

  Abbie marched to her car with determined steps. Something was up, and she’d be damned if she would remain behind to play the docile daughter while her father hid things from her.

  You’re too overprotective, Henry. Just because I have breasts doesn’t mean I’m fragile. She had no doubt that if she’d been born a male the passenger seat of his car would have housed her ass when he’d left.

  * * * *

  Abbie pulled into the parking lot of Winchester Industries and switched off the engine.

  Her father’s car sat in its reserved spot in front of a sign that read H. Sutherland. She grabbed the registration to her vehicle from the glove box, exited the car, and glanced up at the camera situated on the corner of the building.

  Security would be a piece of cake. She did, however, need to figure out a believable reason for being here in the first place without alerting Henry to her presence.

  The evening security guard waved from his perch behind a small, less than clean window. Smudges on the glass blurred his smile, but she couldn’t mistake the shiny gold tooth displayed so proudly from its position in the front of his mouth.

  The door buzzed once, and a click told her the lock had released. She pulled it open and stepped inside.

  “Hi, Willy. How are you this evening?”

  Willy had been one of her favorite night watchmen. His uniform always appeared clean, neatly creased, and he smelled nice. The badge he wore shone perfectly to match the bald spot on top of his head. He had a toothy grin for everyone and a heart of gold.

  “Doing good, Miss Abbie. What brings you out here?”

  “Henry forgot an important piece of his work.” She held up the folded car registration before quickly tucking it into the pocket of her jeans.

  “I hate it when that happens. My wife is always harping at me about how forgetful I’m getting. I reckon she’s right. It’s hell getting old.”

  He glanced suspiciously at the pocket she’d tucked the paper into. “He must be working on something pretty big to bring you down here at this hour. It’s almost nine o’clock.”

  Abbie inwardly groaned. She hated like hell lying to Willie, but left with little choice, lying was exactly what she did.

  “He’s working on some antimicrobial susceptibility tests, and they called him in to straighten out a mix-up in results. It could be the fact that he used the gradient diffusion method instead of—”

  Willie laughed, effectively cutting her off. “Okay, Miss Abbie. You lost me back at antimicro…something.” He waved her on. “Tell him not to work too hard.”

  “Have a good night, Willy. Tell that beautiful wife of yours I’m ready for more of her fried chicken.”

  “I sure will.” He beamed.

  He touched her arm as she turned to go. “Wait. Dr. Sutherland left his dinner down here when he signed in. Do you want to take it up to him on your way through? If not, I can buzz him and let him know it’s here.”

  Abbie ground her teeth. If he picked up the phone, Willy would spill the beans without realizing it. The man loved to talk.

  “Yes, thank you. I’ll take it.” She caught sight of a keycard peeking out from under some papers on Willie’s desk and quickly snagged it when he bent to retrieve Henry’s dinner from under the counter. She stuffed the card into her back pocket.

  He straightened and handed her the bag. “Here you go, Miss. Abbie.”

  “See you, Willy.” She winked at him and hurried off down the hall.

  The cameras strategically placed along the corners of the ceiling made her nervous. If anyone involved in whatever Henry worked on recognized her, they would surely sound the alarm.

  Abbie knew Wincheste
r Industries pushed the limits and sometimes experimented with drugs not previously approved by the FDA. But whatever her father had rushed to the lab for had nothing to do with illegal testing. He wouldn’t have been asked to come back in for that alone. No, this was definitely something bigger.

  To increase her chances of staying under the radar, Abbie bypassed the elevator for the stairs. Taking them two at a time, she stopped at the door to the second floor. With a slight tug, it cracked open enough that she could see into the hallway. She stood there for several heartbeats, listening for any sound, and then slipped quietly into the corridor.

  Male laughter rang out up ahead, and Abbie stilled. Damn. Are they guarding the lab?

  She glanced up at a camera in the corner. Monitors were installed in every office throughout the building, along with the security hub. The longer she stood in the open, the higher her chances were of being seen.

  After a moment, the voices grew faint, signaling the men had headed off in the opposite direction. She blew out a breath she’d been holding and crept silently forward.

  Noticing the door to the lab was closed when she rounded the corner, she quickly fished out the keycard from her back pocket and slid it effortlessly through the vertical groove situated next to the doorjamb. The green light activated right on cue, and she cringed as a click sounded loud enough to startle a sloth.

  The predictable sounds of a lab in use met her ears as she eased the door open and entered her father’s domain. He obviously hadn’t heard the lock disengage over the consistent beeps and humming of the equipment surrounding him.

  Abbie took in the room with a quick glance, noticing a big pair of feet hanging off the end of a bed her father stood next to.

  Her heart began to pound as she crept farther inside. The closer she got the more confused she became. It was definitely a man lying on the bed; only, she’d never seen one that size in her lifetime.

  A sheet covered his lower body from waist to ankles, leaving his upper half bare. His chest appeared devoid of hair and stood off the bed about two feet. He was massive and had to be at least six foot ten by her estimation.

  Warmth enveloped Abbie as her gaze slid to the stranger’s face. Beautiful would be a gross understatement.

  He had a smooth, strong jaw that angled up to slightly pointed ears. Pointed ears? His dark hair lay haphazardly tousled on the pillow. Full lips and a faintly crooked nose made up the rest of his face. She wondered what color his eyes were.

  Without conscious thought, she inched forward on shaky legs. Why would they have him here? Is he sick? Contagious? It didn’t matter as long as she could stand there and drink him in.

  Her father must have sensed her approach. He stiffened a second before spinning around. “What are you doing here?” He seemed more nervous than angry.

  “I could ask you the same thing. What’s going on, Henry?” She nodded toward the incapacitated stranger taking up far too much bed.

  “You have to leave. Now.”

  Anger surged. “What is that man doing here? This isn’t a hospital, so don’t bullshit me.”

  “Honey, please. You’re not supposed to be here. You need to go home. Now. I’ll explain it all in the morning.” He glanced toward to door several times as he spoke.

  “Not until you tell me the truth.”

  He took a deep breath and pinned her with an impatient stare. “Fine. But then you must go.”

  She raised an eyebrow.

  Titles by Ditter Kellen

  The Seeker Series

  Ember Burns

  Ember Learns

  Ember Yearns

  Ember Discerns

  Ember Turns

  Five Book Box Set available

  Shon-Coming in May 2016

  The Rise of Vlad-Coming Soon

  Scruples Series

  Finding Carly

  Cassandra

  Fully Engulfed-Coming Soon

  Secret Series

  Lydia’s Secret

  Midnight Secrets-Coming Soon

  Turn the Page Series

  Turn the Page

  Worlds Apart-Coming Soon

  Enigma Series

  Enigma: What Lies Beneath

  Naura

  Vaulcron-Coming Soon

  Zaureth-Coming Soon

  Eyes Without a Face

  Coming soon in 2016 as a Stand Alone

  Ditter Kellen

  A former 911 dispatcher turned author, Ditter Kellen has been in love with romance for over twenty years. To say she's addicted to reading is an understatement. Her eBook reader is an extension of her and holds many of her fantasies and secrets. It's filled with dragons, shifters, vampires, ghosts and many more jaw-dropping characters who keep her entertained on a daily basis. Ditter's love of paranormal and outrageous imagination have conspired together to bring her where she is today...sitting in front of her computer allowing them free rein. Writing is her passion, what she was born to do. I hope you will enjoy reading her stories as much as she loves spinning them. Ditter resides in Florida with her husband and many unique farm animals. She adores French fries and her phone is permanently attached to her ear. You can contact Ditter by email: ditterkellen@outlook.com