by John Corwin
I rolled my eyes. "Wouldn't you prefer a helicopter?"
He pumped a fist in the air. "Now we're talking!"
I laughed. "Good night, Jack. Have fun." And don't get hurt.
"Cheerio," he said with a wink.
"Cheers, mate." I stuck out my tongue and got in the BMW.
"Where to, Miss Glass?" Joe asked after getting back in.
"My place, please."
When we arrived, it was still a couple of hours before my dinner date, so I told Joe he could come back in a while to collect me. The moment he drove off, a large black SUV took his place. Though I couldn't see through the tinted windows, I already knew who was inside.
George stepped out. "Hello, Miss Glass."
I folded my arms and waited for whatever surprise lay in store for me. "Have another unfortunate soul for me to examine?"
"Actually, this mission—job requires a short road trip." He motioned toward the vehicle. "Do you mind?"
"I have to be ready for a dinner date in two hours." I shook my head. "I simply can't right now."
He gave me an understanding nod. "What if I could have you back in thirty minutes?"
I gave him a long look. "If you can have me there and back in thirty, then I can do it." I paused. "What do I need to do?"
"We have a group of quarantined students. You can tell us which are sick so we don't unnecessarily have to detain the uninfected ones."
It seemed like a worthy endeavor. "Okay, let's go." I moved toward the front door, but George held open the back one for me. "In order to get you there and back in record time, I'll have to ask that you wear a blindfold."
I stopped where I was. "Excuse me?"
He shrugged. "I'm afraid we'll have to break a few rules, and I can't let you witness the infractions."
I knew there was far more to it than that, but also felt sure he meant me no harm. "You don't plan to kidnap me, do you?"
George chuckled. "We will have you back before you know it."
"You'd better." I climbed into the back seat.
Mr. Sticks sat at the wheel. He glanced back at me, but said nothing. After a few blocks, he pulled into a blind alley that reminded me of the one George had vanished into a couple of days ago.
"Is this the part where we go into a secret sewer road?" I asked quite seriously. I almost expected the alley to descend underground.
George disappointed me. "Not today." He handed me a black blindfold with an elastic band. "If you don't mind."
I took it and put it on. It felt so light and feathery, I hardly knew it was there except for the absolute inability to see through it. "You must do this quite often."
"All a part of the job," he said. "Mr. Sticks, you may proceed."
The sensation of gravity tugged on my insides, as if I were rising into the air. The momentum shifted and I knew we were moving forward. A scant few minutes later, I felt a slight bump.
"You may remove the blindfold now," George said.
I took it off and gasped. We were behind a building with the words Edenfield High School on the back. "We're in Decatur." I'd looked at my GPS the day I'd been with my father to see where he was working. It was at least a twenty-minute drive from Midtown.
"Yes it is." George opened the door and got out. "We must hurry if we're to have you back in time."
"This is where the massacre happened."
He looked a bit sad. "An infected student went out of control. We're concerned the serum could affect others this way."
I had plenty of other questions, but refrained from pelting him. "Lead the way."
We went inside the gymnasium where nearly a hundred students lined up and awaiting inspection.
"You'll probably need to touch each one," George said. "Just let us know which ones are infected by scratching your ear. We don't want to alert them."
"Is there any danger of me contracting the disease?"
He shook his head. "It's not contagious like that."
I took in a deep breath and went to the first person, a rather hulking young man who looked as if he played football.
"Who are you?" he asked, a suspicious look in his eyes.
"I'm a nurse," I lied. "I'm simply here to make sure everyone is in good health."
"Whatever," he growled. "I'm in amazing health."
"I'm sure you are, young man."
"The name's Nathan." He jabbed a finger to his chest. "Don't talk to me like I'm a kid."
I resisted a roll of my eyes and touched his hand. Nothing. I sensed a slight chill, but it might simply have been the temperature of the room. I briefly touched the hand of each student as I passed. I'm sure they believed I was the worst nurse ever. If any of them tried to strike up a conversation, I politely smiled but said nothing.
Time is of the essence.
The chill I'd felt earlier grew stronger, sending goose bumps along my arm. One of the infected must have been near, but with so many other students around, I couldn't narrow down the source.
It wasn't until I was about halfway through that I felt the writhing cold sensation in a young woman. I smiled at her reassuringly. She flashed a sarcastic smile back at me. I noticed something about her I hadn't noticed about Stephen or Joey. Her skin wasn't precisely warm. I frowned and looked at her hand.
The girl seemed to sense something was wrong. A look of concentration came over her face and suddenly, her skin felt warm. I scratched my ear and pretended not to notice the abrupt change. I moved to the next student and the next. Not far from the girl, I detected the parasitic presence in a boy and scratched my ear. Unlike the girl, his skin felt normal at first touch. I continued down the line until reached the next to the last person.
The teen glared at me suspiciously. "What are you doing? Aren't you supposed to grab us in the crotch and tell us to cough?"
"Just a quick check of your vitals."
His eyes narrowed. "Yeah, right."
I reached for his hand, but he jerked it away. The split second of proximity, however, sent a strong chill up my spine. I went to scratch my ear, but before I could move at all, he grabbed me, spun me around, and locked a hand to my throat.
"Don't come near me!" he shouted. "I'll snap her neck."
Just lovely. Killed by a hormone-enraged teen on a super-soldier serum.
George raced over. "Calm down." He held his hands in front of him. "Let the nice lady go."
The sensation was too much like what Stephen had done to me. I tried to control my reaction, but panic set in. This kid's touch amplified the sensation of the presence inside him. I felt the cold entity squirming in lust and need.
"Just let her go," George said. "We're only here to make sure everyone is okay."
"I said no!" the teen screamed. His hand went tight against my throat. I tried to break free, tried to wriggle from his grasp, but he was as insanely strong as Stephen.
I sensed that the cold parasite inside him desired nothing more than to warm itself with my hot blood. As with Joey, I felt as though I could touch it. Cringing with disgust, I reached out somehow and embraced it with my senses. A cold, slimy, wriggling sensation touched the palms of my hands even though they weren't actually touching anything. As if trying to kill a bug, I squeezed.
The boy stiffened and shouted. His hand left my throat.
I heard a whistling noise. The boy went absolutely limp and fell to the floor. I looked up and noticed the other three students I'd flagged as carriers making a break for the door. Several people in black suits appeared, aimed their fists at the fleeing students. Silvery darts zipped through the air. Two students went down. The third literally leapt over the heads of several students as if it he were trying out for professional basketball. The huge football player, Nathan, stuck out an arm at neck level. The runner slammed into him.
Nathan, huge brute that he was, skidded across the floor, shouting in pain and surprise.
My jaw dropped open.
The runner leapt over another group of George's people. Several dar
ts found their mark and he went limp in midair. His body thudded to the hardwood floor and slid a few feet before coming to a stop.
Panicked breaths rose in my voice as the other students stampeded. George's people opened the doors and let them out. Soon, all that remained were the four unconscious infected students.
I touched my throat and looked at George. "He could have killed me."
"Our darts would have knocked him out before he could do any harm." George gave me a discerning look. "What did you do to make him release you?"
"I don't know. I tried to squish the parasite inside him." A shiver of disgust ran along my skin. I looked at my hands. They seemed clean, but felt filthy.
"Intriguing." George pursed his lips. "Your ability seems more versatile than we thought."
I rubbed my hands together. The skin felt normal and not covered with bug slime. "I suppose it is."
"I would ask that you remain for a while so we could study it in depth, but I suspect you're eager to return home."
It took a moment for his statement to register. "Yes, I suppose I am." I shook my head to realign myself with the real world. "I can see why you call yourselves the Custodians."
He raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
I looked around at the wake of the incident. "If word of an experimental super-soldier drug got out, it would be quite a scandal. Your people must clean a lot of dirty laundry."
George pressed his lips together. "You're partially right, Miss Glass, but I can't go into further details."
I wanted to be angry about what had happened, but George's people had handled it rather quickly and efficiently. It would seem I was safe in their hands. They were nothing if not experts of their profession, from what I had seen. I headed outside.
We reached the SUV and climbed in. Once again, I put on the blindfold. I idly wondered what it would be like for Tyler to blindfold me while he had his way. I shivered in anticipation and hoped George and Mr. Sticks didn't see my body language. After the feeling of ascending, moving forward and, a few moments later, descending, I was able to pull off my blindfold and enjoy the view of the blind alley though this time we faced the exit instead of the wall. Mr. Sticks drove us onto the road and around the corner to my condo.
George opened the car door for me and gave me a serious look. "What you've done tonight will be a tremendous help, Miss Glass. With your assistance, we may be able to stop this before it spreads."
"Do you have other people in your employ who can do what I can?" I asked.
He shook his head. "Your ability is quite singular. In many cases, these infected individuals are able to adjust their heart rate, body temperature, and even scents to mask their condition. You are the only person capable of seeing through the façade."
"One of them didn't have warm skin," I said. "The girl's skin felt strange—like soft fabric at room temperature, but then it warmed."
He nodded. "As you can imagine, a super-soldier serum would give people greater control over their bodily functions in order to survive."
I shook my head slowly. "I've seen movies about this kind of stuff, but never thought it could be real."
"You should get ready for your date," George said. "Thank you once again." With that, he climbed back into the SUV. Mr. Sticks promptly gunned the accelerator and they pulled into traffic.
I checked the time and saw I had a little less than an hour and a half to ready myself. I hurried up to the flat and packed my bag. Thinking of Tyler was nearly enough to banish thoughts of the afternoon. It was best not to think about my new side job since I couldn't tell anyone about it anyway. I sighed and contemplated my new secret life. I loved talking about my days with Isabel. It felt like such an awful shame I couldn't share this with her or Tyler.
I slid into a red dress with matching high heels, thinking back to Tyler's request that I dress sexy. I wondered if acceding to his request was another big step toward the point of no return, and went so far as to put on makeup. I wanted to look good for him. I wanted him to burn with lust at the sight of me like I did with him.
Good lord, this man was going to do me in.
I called Joe while I packed and made myself pretty. He met me downstairs and drove me to the Gregorian. Tyler stood outside, a single rose in his hand and a gorgeous smile on his face. It was enough to make the rest of the day's events vanish like smoke in a breeze.
That smile is for me.
I felt so lucky, so happy, and a little frightened. Now that I'd had mind-blowing sex, I should be able to slow down, right? Take things at a reasonable pace. Perhaps I shouldn't even entertain the idea of sex tonight. The low burn in my lady parts intensified. My body apparently didn't agree with such an idea. But I couldn't let this man sweep me away. I would only end up broken against him and swept back out into the void of lonely depression I'd endured the last time I'd allowed myself to feel so strongly for another.
Judging by the way my heart beat harder as I looked at Tyler, it wasn't giving me much of a choice.
He handed me the rose, and tipped my mouth up to meet his for a sweet kiss. "Hello, Emily."
"Hello, Tyler." My voice betrayed a slight tremble.
We stepped into the lift, and Tyler pressed his thumb to the reader. The doors closed and he looked me over with hungry eyes. "My God, you look stunning." His lips curled into a grin. "I just want to take you right here."
"Why, Mr. Rock, how very forward you are."
He crossed the space in a heartbeat, his hand cupping my chin. I shivered, my body wanting to feel him against me. His eyes looked hungrily at my lips. He leaned closer. "May I take liberties with your lip, Emily?"
Oh dear.
I nodded as my body shivered in delicious anticipation. He made me feel so helpless. So desired. So sexy.
His lips took my lower lip and tugged. Just when I thought he'd release it, I felt the sting of his teeth as he nipped me. I pressed myself against him, standing on tiptoes and taking his lip between my teeth. He groaned, and hardened.
"So," I said, my breath shuddering from my chest. "Are you the main course?"
The lift stopped, and the doors slid open. He shook his head, and gave me a predatory look. "Oh no, my dear. You are." His arm wrapped around my waist, and cradled my body without effort, carrying me from the lift and into his penthouse.
The delicious aroma of cooked veggies tickled my nose. I buried my face in his chest and sighed, breathing him in. He set me down. Nipped me on the neck, and drew in a breath.
"Dessert before or after?"
Everything I'd told myself about waiting and being patient flew from my mind and scattered in his presence. I wanted him. It felt so right being in his arms.
"What do you want?" I asked.
He swept me off my feet again, both literally and figuratively, his mouth set in a wolfish smile. "I want dessert before and after."
I was still sore. I still had so many doubts. But everything was forgotten as he worked his teeth down my neck, and then ran his tongue lightly up to my ear lobe. He put me on the bed and lay down next to me.
"Would you like to try something different?" he said, leaning on his elbow.
"Different how?" I asked, curious and apprehensive.
"Have you ever been blindfolded?"
My stomach twinged. "Blindfolded?" I couldn't help but wonder if he somehow knew about my little field trip to the high school.
A predatory smile lit his features. "Or been tied down?"
I suddenly didn't feel like having desert. "Tied down?" I sat up, and straightened my dress. "Just what sort of things are you into, Tyler?"
His grin faltered. "I'm sorry. I just thought it might be fun."
"To tie me down and have your way with me?"
"Well, when you put it like that, yes." His grin returned.
I rolled my eyes and pushed myself off the end of the bed. "I don't know that I'd ever be into something like that. A little kink is fine, but—" I broke off as thoughts of him doing such sordid things wit
h other women broke into my mind.
What made him think about blindfolding me out of the blue? Did he somehow know what I'd done today?
Chapter 25
He hopped off the bed and came up behind me, his hands rubbing down my arms. "I'm sorry. I've never tried anything like it before, but I thought—well, it seemed like it might be fun."
I turned and gave him a raised eyebrow. "You've never tried it, and yet you think I might want to on our second, uh, go-around?"
"Technically, it'd be our fourth." His eyes looked amused.
"Don't you get technical with me." I tried and failed to be cross with him. "Are you certain you've never tried these things with other women?"
He kissed me. "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."
I looked at him, expecting to see a twitch of dishonesty in his gaze, but couldn't detect any falsehoods. If only I could read his bloody mind. Additionally, his blindfolding question seemed innocent enough—well, at least when concerned with my new undercover career.
He ran a hand up my arm, drawing goose bumps as he did. His hand continued to my neck, grabbing a handful of hair and giving it a gentle tug. I shivered and felt my doubts melting away. His teeth and lips settled the matter, taking turns with my earlobes and neck.
I leaned back into him, tangling my arms about his neck, and nibbling on his lips. I turned and looked into his eyes. "Be gentle with me, Tyler. I don't know how much I'm ready for yet. I hardly know you. I—"
He pressed a finger to my lips. "Just enjoy the moment. Sometimes, it's all we have."
I smiled. Nodded. "Okay. Just no mad scientist experiments quite yet."
He laughed. "That leaves me plenty of room to operate." He spun us around and pushed me back on the bed. I lay back on it as he leaned over me, his muscular arms planted to either side, and kissed me with a passion that left me breathless.
We were both panting by the time we finished. I realized, in a detached way, that my red dress had managed to stay on me despite our energetic sex. Tyler pulled out of me and rolled to my side, putting his arm under my neck and pulling me against him. He bit my lip to a point just shy of pain. "You captivate me, Emily. When you're away, I have trouble thinking of anything else. The world makes no sense in your absence."