Paragons 3
Page 10
“She’s a protector of the city,” another reporter said. “We’ve seen it countless times.”
Fenrir’s lips formed a thin line, and the wrinkles on his face showed. “I do not buy that. We have seen many Paragons attack us for no reason, and that is why we have set up these new laws that have now gone into effect.”
“But according to the NYPD Paragon unit,” a reporter said. It was the blond one, and she appeared happy. “White Angel’s home is the same as yours.”
“My daughter, Fleur, just hasn’t updated her current residence.”
Fleur was watching with me, and so was Lola. The White Angel burst out laughing. “Wait for it,” she said.
The blond reporter narrowed her eyes. “Sir, that isn’t true. The record shows that she just changed it to your residence three weeks ago.”
Fenrir had a look of shock and horror on his face. This was too great for all of us. Seeing the man that had made it his mission to take us all out, and hurt even his own daughter, be surprised by something. This might have been the first time Fleur shocked him.
“What made you do that?” I asked.
Fleur shrugged. “When I went with you to register, I decided to change it. Something Lola and I do every six months or so. Just to make sure that none of the villains get a beat on us.”
That was very smart, and I was once again impressed with Fleur and Lola.
Lola snickered. “Before that Fleur used her brother's address.”
That was no surprise and fun, as well. While being a hero was serious business, taking a moment to have some fun with it was needed. I was glad both had been able to do that and hoped we could do more of it in the future.
On the TV, Fenrir was in full-on spin mode. Trying to make the best of it, and now he was forced to let the new federal agency, that I’m sure Reign would have been proud of, into Fenrir’s luxurious place. Along with the media, to show everyone that he wasn’t letting Fleur live with him.
“I can’t believe he is going to actually do that,” Fleur said. “He hates letting strangers into his place.”
“He had no real no choice,” I said. “If he didn’t, he would look like a hypocrite, and he can’t have that.”
“True,” Fleur said.
“I wish we could be there.” Lola had an evil grin on her face. “It would be humorous to see him flustered.”
“The real question is can we use this against him,” Fleur said. “If we can get an edge, we have to take it.”
She was right, but I wasn’t sure what that might be.
32
Alone time
That night, after trying to figure out what we might be able to do, I sat in my room. To help clear my head, I turned on my gaming system and put in the latest American football game. It was a mess in some ways with the extras that distracted from that actual game, but I ignored all that.
For fun, I played a game with my two favorite teams, the Eagles and Lions. Just because I lived in New York didn’t mean I was going to root for the teams here. Just something about those two teams that I liked. Not sure why.
Tonight, I was playing as the Eagles and throttling the Lions. No surprise there, since the Lions, for the most part, have been a terrible team and the Eagles a good one. As I ran up the score, I hoped to figure out more about Fenrir.
Lola was still trying to find the old man, Stan. As much as I hoped we could locate him, I knew it might not help. Part of me just wanted to make sure the man was fine. I knew better than most that humans didn’t live forever, and that he might have passed away and entered the afterlife. Whichever one that was for him. I just hoped it wasn’t Hades’ domain, that place was awful, and I wouldn’t wish it on my biggest enemy. Well, that wasn’t technically true. I’d love to see Fenrir and Hera there, and hoped Reign was. But not most people, although I knew that a great many people passed through there.
A knock sounded on my door, and then Lola entered. She was dressed in her typical attire, a short sexy skirt, and a blouse that was unbuttoned at the top to show just a tease of her breasts. Her long brown hair hung down to her shoulders, unhindered by anything.
As always, she looked stunning, and I had trouble taking my eyes off her. She was hot and smart, such an incredible combo and I was blessed to have her in my life.
Lola walked over to me in her sexy, swaying walk. One that just made me want to rip her clothes off and make love to her. The way her hips went back and forth was so enticing. I stared at her as she made her way to me. Both of us knew that I would, and that made me smile.
She sat next to me on the sofa in the room. The room was more like a studio condo. It reminded me of the way I lived for most of my life. It wasn’t until the last millennium or so that I started to have larger houses, and separate rooms.
Sure, I could have long before that, but I was the God of War, and while the people might not like me at times, I still was close to them. I wanted to live like mortals to better understand them.
With the room, it helped relax me, and made everything much more smooth.
“You okay?” I asked her.
She shook her head. “I feel like I’m failing you all. I can’t find Stan, I can’t hack into Fenrir’s systems. I’m useless.”
It was hard not to laugh. This might be the first time I’d ever heard Lola have any self-doubt. To me it was comical, and not remotely needed. I turned to face her and saw the pain in her eyes. She really was feeling bad and not helpful.
I cupped her face and looked deep into her pained, but eloquent brown eyes. “Lola,” I said. “Trust me, you aren’t useless. Just because right now you haven’t succeeded, doesn’t mean you won’t, and haven’t. None of us are having much success these days. It’s been a snail’s pace to make any headway.”
“Still—” she started to say.
“No, you are the glue of this team. The one that keeps us together and safe. If we didn’t have you, none of this would be possible. None of it.”
“That isn’t true,” Lola said. “I’m not a Paragon.”
This time I did laugh. “Could have fooled me. The technology you have created. You keep us safe, and able to focus. You. Not me, not Fleur, not Felicity, not Athena, not McGarrett. You.”
“I just don’t feel like I’m pulling my weight.”
I knew how that felt, and understood. Having things get hard and not work out for a person was tough to get through. Even for the strongest of people, failure was difficult. Over the years, I learned the hard way that if I let myself focus on the bad, the negative, that I wouldn’t be able to win the war. That was a person’s biggest enemy. Not the people they had to defeat, but themselves.
“I have faith in you. I know that you will find Stan. That you will figure out a way to depose Fenrir. You are the smartest person I have ever met.”
Lola smiled. “I doubt that.”
Chuckling, I still stared in her eyes. My hands still on her silky-smooth skin, cupping her face. “You are.”
Suddenly she was crying.
“Oh, Lola.”
“You are too sweet,” she said.
That was a rare thing to be said about me. I was no God of Love or romance. That was for sure, but I speak from the heart, and always will.
“Lola, I love you. You mean the world to me, and I know in my heart that you are rare beyond compare. You mean so much, and I know we can and will win.”
She leaned into me and kissed me. Her tears dried up as we continued to kiss. Those gentle lips pressed against mine. Her smooth, soft body countered my rough, hard one. Lola might not look strong or powerful, but here and now she was.
Letting her take control, she pushed me back. Then sat on top of me, straddling me.
Even if I wanted to stop my cock from getting hard, I couldn’t. She turned me on, and now I wanted her. To be in her, and to make love to her. Lola kissed me, hard and with a passion that only she had. Her hips rocked back and forth as she dry humped me. Making my cock get even harder.
/> At times, she could be such a tease. Making me long for her, even though she was on top of me. Lola had that talent, and I loved it.
“I love you,” I said between her kisses.
She giggled. “I love you too.”
Slowly, she undressed me. Unfortunately that meant she had to stand up, but that meant my cock was free.
With my clothes off, she took all my member into her mouth. Every inch of my massive erection. Her tongue worked magic on me. Sending a chill through me, and nearly making me explode in a minute. It took all I had not to give in to the rising climax in me.
As Lola sucked on me, her hands moved up and down my body. Teasing every inch of me. Playing with my nipples and letting me suck on her fingers. It was some of the most intense moments I’ve had in lovemaking.
Unable to control myself, I exploded into her mouth. Filling her with my cum. “Lola,” I moaned in bliss.
She looked up to me and swallowed.
It was my turn to pleasure her and I did. Trading places, I undressed her and took in her amazing body. Her pale smooth skin, and her perky breasts. Those hard pink nipples were so inviting. As was her lush flower between her legs. I wanted to kiss all of her at once. To pleasure her in ways that no one but I could.
Starting at her neck, I worked my way down to her breasts, nipples. Teasing them with my tongue, and hands. Continuing down her body, I paused only briefly at her pussy. Then down her legs, until I was at her feet. Rubbing her feet and kissing them brought me joy. She looked up at me, with pleasure and relaxation in her eyes.
Then I made my way back up her legs. To her amazing lower lips and found her clit. Using my tongue on her clit, and my fingers in her. I sucked and thrust, doing my best to make her happy. To bring her to a climax and see her body melt into carnal relaxation and happiness.
“Ares,” Lola screamed out in delight. That didn’t stop me, I knew I could get her to climax again, and again.
After her third time, I slid up her body and entered her. Making love to her and forgetting about the rest of the world. It was just Lola and me, nothing else. I loved her and she loved me. That was all that mattered right now.
33
Sneaking into Epps
The next morning, all three of us had a meeting with Mako in person. He wanted to pass over the technology he had, and to see if Lola could help improve it.
Just as we were about to leave, Mako sent word that his building was under surveillance by the anti-Paragon agents in NYC. That was going to make things difficult. Earlier this morning the agency released a list of their most wanted Paragons.
One guess as to who was at the top of it: me. Followed by Fleur, Felicity and Athena. At least, Fenrir didn’t put Lola or McGarrett on there. We all knew for sure that he knew about them. With them watching Mako, it made me worry that Fenrir had learned about him and us too.
That was a very bad sign and made me wonder if he had some sort of device already in place that was watching Epps Technologies. That would be very bad for both Mako and us. I know that I could be a little paranoid at times, but with the way this trip to Earth had been, nothing would surprise me.
The last thing I wanted was for the ones I cared most about to get hurt.
“We’ll have to be super careful,” I said.
Lola smiled. She was still high from the night before, and our lovemaking. So was I for that matter. Anytime I got to make love to Lola, Fleur, or Felicity I was in bliss for a while. There was nothing like it in the world.
“I know,” Fleur said. “Mako said there was an underground entrance, and he doesn’t think it will be watched.”
I didn’t like the phrasing of that one bit. Just because it might not be common knowledge didn’t mean Fenrir and his new agency didn’t know about it. They seemed to have access to data and resources that no one should. That was the most frustrating part of it all. The unlimited access Fenrir had.
It grated me that he had the government behind him. I was getting sick of dealing with politics and corrupt mortals. The longer we had to deal with this, the more likely it was that my dear mother’s plan was going to work. That pissed me off.
Instead of using Fleur’s normal car, we picked up a much more inconspicuous car. A standard sedan that blended in the streets well. New York traffic was brutal, but it was easy to not be noticed if one didn’t want to.
As much as I would have liked to take a direct route to Epps Technologies, we didn’t. Maybe it was all of us being paranoid, but we didn’t want the government to somehow track us backward, if they could do that.
Fleur made the drive, tricky and hard to follow at times. The only good thing about this was that it allowed Lola to get work done. The hacker might only have her smartphone, but that was enough for her. With her knowledge and skills, she was basically tapped into her main setup back at the lair. That was amazing to me.
“What you working on?” I asked.
Lola smiled. “I think I finally have a lead on Stan,” she said.
“I knew you could do it,” I said.
She nodded. “Though it’s not good.”
That I didn’t want to hear. The man had been nice, and I really hoped that he would be able to help up. Even if it was just a little bit.
“How so?”
“I think he’s in hospice care,” Lola said.
That wasn’t good. He was old, and I had seen more than one person go there to die. As much as I wished I had the power to make everyone live as long as did, I knew that wasn’t possible, and would lead to problems that I couldn’t even imagine.
“We can go after our meeting with Mako,” Fleur said. “I would like to see him.”
“Me too,” I said.
Eventually we arrived close to the Epps building. Looking around, it didn’t appear to be watched, but that didn’t mean a thing. A group of covert federal agents would have the ability to blend in. Not be seen by even the likes of me, or anyone on the team.
“What do you think?” I asked.
“We go to the secret garage,” Fleur said.
That worried me more than I let them know. The more I thought about it, the more it felt like a trap to me. That we would be fighting for a way out of the place and never actually meet with Mako.
“If you are certain,” I said.
“We have to,” Lola said.
She appeared to be okay with it. After locating Stan, she had gone to work on seeing if she could find any cameras here. The garage that Mako said would be the safest, had none. Again, I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad.
“Very well.” I took a deep breath in and prepared for the worst.
34
The Worst
Pulling into the underground garage, the hair on my skin tingled. It felt wrong, and just as I was about to voice my opinion we were surrounded by black SUVs.
“Fuck,” I said. Jumping out of the car. “Stay.”
Both of them nodded. We had talked about keeping them away from the Paragon weapons that Fenrir and the agency had been using. Since I had proved to be immune to them, I was the one to take the alpha of the attack and to get us out of here.
The lead car stopped right in front of us, and a burly man exited it. One that reminded me of a few stereotypical alpha males. He was just as large as I was, with big arms and shoulders. There was little doubt that this man worked out daily, and enjoyed fighting.
“Ares,” he said. “You have been summoned by Fenrir.”
I laughed. “Summoned is a nice way to put it.”
The man smirked. “You are the most wanted man in America.”
I shrugged. That was both amusing to me, and frustrating. I had to hope that all our efforts to show the truth were working.
“And if I refuse,” I said.
“Then I’ve been told to use any means necessary,” he said. The brutish man waved his hand, and two dozen men exited the SUV’s around us.
I really wasn’t concerned about them. Being a God had its benefits, an
d I would be able to take care of these men in a blink of an eye. None of them appeared to have celestial bronze, or any other magical weapons. That was my only issue these days.
Moving with my godly speed, I took out the first goon with a leg sweep that he never saw coming. It was almost comical how the man went down to the ground. Screaming like the pansy he was.
From there the others were much better prepared, but not enough. No matter how much a mortal thought he was ready to fight me, he wasn’t. The only ones that have been able to hold their own were Paragons, and not even all of them.
These guys were in over their heads and they knew it. Moving to the next closest, a jab to the chest and he went smashing into the SUV behind him. I held back on the punch, and it still caused him to dent the vehicle. That hadn’t been my intention, but right now I wasn’t pleased with this ambush.
As I fought, I had to wonder how they had known we would be here. Did Mako set us up? Or did Fenrir have an inside man other than him at Epps? I just didn’t know, and that was yet another frustration.
Before most of the men could even react, I had them on their backs and needing a trip to the emergency room. The old me would have made that even unnecessary, but I was a hero, and they didn’t kill. It would have made my life a hell of a lot simpler. If we could just kill all those that were in our way, we would be in a much better situation.
Now it was just me and the lead henchman. “Tell your little boss,” I said. “That we do not recognize his authority and will not stand still. Nor do the people. He cannot and will not oppress us.”
The man gritted his teeth and his nostrils flared. Sometimes my super hearing wasn’t an advantage. His teeth sounded awful, and under his breath he muttered, “I’ll fucking kill you and every other Paragon, you slime.”
It took everything I had in my power not to turn around and kick him in the balls. He was a rude and vile prick.
The number of people that I have met on Earth, this time back, that were like him sickened me. There were always bad people, but these days it was worse than ever before. Why that was I didn’t know, but it was the case. That being said, there were still some people that made this worth it. Some of the best people I had ever met were here now too. It was such a shame that to have such good people, there had to be such bad people. Balance sucked sometimes.