“Yours.” Midnight pushed on the door and swung it wide.
Jessie stepped inside. The living room was nice sized, fully furnished and had a gray-stone fireplace. It was charming and she loved it. She dropped her bag before turning to face Midnight again.
“Let’s go to the medical center.”
“Aren’t you going to explore?”
“Nope. I’ll do that later. I’m dying to know what I do now.”
Midnight blinked. “All right.”
Jessie locked the door and pocketed the key. She followed Midnight to the Jeep. The officer at the gate stopped them with a deep frown.
“Is something wrong?”
Midnight shrugged. “She said she’d look at it later. She wants to go to work.”
He reached over and punched in a code to open the electric gate. “Have a good day.”
The medical center was located near the front gates. It was a single-story building with a glass front. It looked deserted as Midnight parked the Jeep at the curb. No one was on the street either. Jessie climbed out.
“This is where I leave.” Midnight gave her a nod. “Enjoy your work, whatever it may be.”
“Thank you.” Jessie hesitated. “How do I get home later?”
Midnight shrugged. “I don’t know. No one told me to pick you up.” She waved goodbye and drove off.
Jessie shoved her hands inside her back jeans pockets and watched Midnight disappear in the Jeep around a corner. She sighed. So far, this had to be one of her weirdest days. She turned, studying the medical center and pushed open the glass doors.
Inside were chairs against the window, one long counter and in the back behind the counter were a few exam tables. They were in the open for anyone to see. Jessie’s eyebrows rose. She glanced around the room but didn’t see anyone. She spotted doors and a few hallways on the other side of the long counter.
“Hello!” Jessie didn’t exactly yell but she knew someone had to have heard her.
“Coming,” a man shouted from the hallway. He came down it and peered at her. “You must be Miss Dupree. I’m Paul, the nurse here. Dr. Ted Treadmont is in the back with Beauty. We’re so glad that you’re here. We’ve hated keeping her out but she was really traumatized by last night. We want to wake her up and let her see you. We think it might calm her to see you at her side. When she woke up this morning after the drugs wore off, she wouldn’t stop screaming. We had to put her right back out.”
Jessie walked around the counter. “I’ll do what I can.”
“Thank you. We were relieved to hear you were coming. Trisha, uh, Dr. Norbit, is on vacation and unable to come back to help out. We thought a female would help. We considered bringing other New Species in to sit with her but we didn’t want to shock her more. Most of them were too young to remember much and when they see their own kind they have freaked out. Some of them don’t know they look different from us. They’ve only seen humans, so seeing a Species scares the shit out of them.”
Jessie blinked. “I never thought of that. I’ve yet to find a woman who had a mirror in whatever prison she’d been confined in.”
“Yeah. It’s a learning process. I’ll be glad when Trisha comes back. They’ve needed her at Reservation for some months now.”
Paul led her down a hall. The last bed in the corner was Beauty’s. Jessie studied the older man with white hair who sat on a chair with a laptop on his lap. He wore glasses and smiled at Jessie.
“You must be Miss Dupree. Thank you so much for coming. I was informed of what happened last night.” His smile died. “Are you dizzy? Experiencing nausea? Headaches?”
“I’m good.” Her focus slid to Beauty.
Jessie noticed they’d bathed the frail female. Her hair was now a beautiful, shiny brown. It hung long, flowing down over her shoulders and she looked peaceful in her sleep. The bedding this time was clean and she wore a pretty flower-print nightgown. Jessie winced over the material. It was pretty in the “I’m eighty years old and it’s cool to want to resemble a florist shop” kind of pretty but the last thing Beauty needed to worry about was having fashion sense.
Jessie stepped forward. “I thought the bruising would be worse.”
“Most of it was dirt.” Paul shook his head. “I heard she was really in bad shape when she came in.”
Jessie gave him a sharp look. “You didn’t clean her?” She glanced at the doctor, deciding he looked a little frail to handle that kind of job.
“Some of the women from the dorm came.” Paul hesitated. “Men aren’t allowed to touch one of them without their clothing on unless it’s life or death. I think they are afraid.” He cleared his throat. “You know.” He jerked his head. “See the camera? They installed it to watch her.”
“They are worried one of you will molest her?” Jessie turned, saw the camera and gave a wave. She turned her back on it. “Can you blame them? I’m sure you’re trusted but these women have been through the worst abuse.”
Paul nodded. “They said that most of it was dirt.”
“She’s in good health besides the extremely poor diet and some abuse she suffered.” Dr. Treadmont sighed. “They allowed me to examine her with four of their women present.” He met Jessie’s eyes. “She’s been badly abused for years. She’s also been starved.”
She understood what he wasn’t saying aloud. “I haven’t found one yet who hasn’t been abused or starved.” She moved closer to the bed and lifted Beauty’s hand to hold it. It felt delicate and small inside her gentle grip. “Do you know what my job is exactly?” She glanced at the doctor.
He shrugged. “What job? I was told you were here to talk with her when she wakes.” The man glanced at his watch. “Which should be soon.” He stood. “I’ll be in my office. One of us is supposed to stay with her at all times.”
Paul met Jessie’s gaze. “Just give a yell if you need help.” He pulled the vacant chair to the bed so Jessie could sit and still hold Beauty’s hand. “I was told it’s better if men aren’t around when you talk to her. Good luck.”
“Wait. Do you know what my job is?”
He hesitated. “Just to be here for her. When you’ve talked to her and get her settled, I know they wanted you to introduce her to a few of the females. They just need to get her not to be afraid of them first. When she’s more stable medically she’ll be moved into the women’s dorm.”
Great. “So you’ll call someone to let them know when she’s ready to be introduced to some of the women?”
He pointed to the camera. “It’s got sound and they are monitoring. Talk to the camera and let them know what you need.” He fled.
Jessie studied Beauty closely. She looked young but they were usually older than they appeared. She’d guess the woman was probably in her late twenties. Usually she had time to study the male kidnappers involved to profile what kind of monster had victimized the women but not this time. She wondered what kind of monster had locked Beauty up. She was going into this blind. What mattered the most was getting Beauty through the shock of her drastic life change.
Beauty stirred and Jessie stood, gripping the woman’s hand a little tighter. Brown eyes flicked open and Jessie smiled.
“Hi, Beauty. It’s Jessie. Do you remember me? I’m fine. How are you doing?”
Fear was instant. The woman tensed and gripped Jessie’s hand hard. She stared up at Jessie with wide, alarmed eyes, before she appeared to calm. “I thought you died.”
“No. I just had a head wound. I’m fine. How are you feeling?”
The woman hesitated. “I’m scared.”
Jessie kept talking to her, soothing her, until the woman’s fear eased. She learned that Beauty had been with her captor for a long time. She couldn’t remember the testing facility and she had no clue what she was.
Jessie was going to have to explain it to her but didn’t know where to start. She didn’t want to tell her all the horrors about Mercile Industries and what they’d done. That was a story for another time when the
woman was stronger. Instead she gently explained that there were some physical differences between them and then started to tell her that people like Beauty wanted to meet her.
“Remember what I said last night? That I was going to get you home to your family and you’d be safe? Well, you’re here.” Jessie shot a look at the camera. “I want you to meet some of them. Some really nice women like you. They are going to come soon and meet you.” She gave her full attention back to the woman on the bed.
Beauty looked afraid again and Jessie tried to soothe her. “They aren’t going to hurt you. You were afraid of me when we met but you’re not anymore, are you?”
“No. You are nice.”
Jessie smiled. “So are they. They’ve been looking for you.” Jessie heard a soft sound and turned her head toward the door. She smiled at Halfpint, realized they’d probably been waiting in the hallway.
Jessie waved her in and studied Beauty. “This is Halfpint. She was just like you, Beauty. She was locked up and hurt.” Jessie’s voice softened. “She’s really nice and she knows how you’re feeling right now. She’s been where you are.”
Beauty looked at the short woman who timidly stepped into the hospital room and gasped. Halfpint lifted a foot to step back but Jessie gestured for her to stay. Beauty released Jessie’s hand and both of her hands lifted to her own face. Jessie understood.
“Isn’t Halfpint beautiful? Just like you are,” Jessie said softly. “I told you that you have family here.”
Beauty stared at Jessie with dawning understanding. “I resemble her and not you?”
“Yes. You’re far prettier than I could ever be. I envy you. I’d love to have your cheekbones and your beautiful eyes.”
Beauty smiled. “Really?”
“Yes. Why do you think I named you Beauty? You’re beautiful.”
Beauty glanced shyly at Halfpint. “You’re like me? You were locked up too by mean people?”
Halfpint blinked back tears. “Yes, I was. Jessie found me too and brought me home. I’ve been free for a while and I’m so happy here. Can I touch you? I would like to hold you.”
Beauty’s gaze flew to Jessie. Jessie nodded as she eased back and switched places with Halfpint. In minutes the women were hugging and talking. Jessie eventually eased out of the room and spotted Tiny lurking in the hallway.
“Jessie!”
Jessie hugged her hard. Tiny was another woman she’d saved who looked a hundred percent healthy and happy these days.
* * * * *
Justice turned his focus away from the camera and found Tiger standing behind him grinning. “I like the human. She’s really good with our kind.”
“Yes,” Justice agreed softly. “Jessie is.”
Tiger’s grin faded. “Are you sure you want her living in our area? We’ve never had a human stay there.”
“I swore to her father that I’d keep an eye on her and that she’d be safe. She can’t be more protected than by living where she is.”
Tiger didn’t look thrilled. “I’m glad I live a few houses down from her. I hope she doesn’t have any weird habits.”
Justice studied his friend. “What kind of habits?”
“I don’t know. Maybe she cooks bad-smelling food or worse, she could listen to loud music that I hate.”
Justice glanced back at the security screen. Jessie remained out of camera range now that she’d left the room Beauty was being kept in but he really wished she’d return. He longed to look at her, hear her voice, and wanted to see her in person.
“Send someone to pick her up and take her home. She’s had a long day. Tell her to go back to the medical center in the morning. Tomorrow she can move Beauty into the dorm if Ted clears it. Have whoever picks her up take her dinner. She shouldn’t cook tonight after the past twelve hours she’s endured. She likes prime rib.”
Tiger’s eyebrows lifted. “How do you know that?”
Justice inwardly winced over revealing too much. “I just do. Make sure she’s taken care of and fed well. I have to go make some calls. The governor is demanding we go to a charity event next month and I’m going to accept. It’s for animal rights and it would be bad publicity if we refused, so get ready to be annoyed.”
“Shit,” Tiger groaned. “Take Brass.”
“He’s going too but I want you there.” Humor curved Justice’s lips. “If I have to suffer, you should too. The governor’s wife found you especially charming.”
“She patted my ass!”
“See? She’s Species friendly.”
Justice laughed, exited the security building quickly and hoped to clear his busy schedule as quickly as possible. Jessie was at Homeland and he wanted to talk to her.
Chapter Nine
Jessie closed the door and held the large bag of takeout food from the NSO cafeteria. She hadn’t eaten all day and the smell of dinner made her stomach rumble. She turned on lights to study the living room, debating whether to eat or explore. Her stomach rumbled again, settling the debate.
The couch was plush and comfy as she sat, settled the bag on the table before her and opened it. The scent of prime rib made her groan. Justice had to have ordered it for her since they hadn’t asked her what she wanted. At least she hoped he’d done something that thoughtful. For all she knew, prime rib could have been the day’s special.
She’d gotten to spend time with Tiny and Halfpint again. That had been great. She’d always believed her job rewarding since joining the task force but nothing reaffirmed that more than seeing the changes in the two. They’d been frightened, injured, abused women who were shells when they’d been rescued. Now they were secure, thriving individuals who had found happiness.
The cafeteria had sent everything from silverware to napkins and two types of sodas. She ate—almost inhaled the food—and enjoyed every bite. She ignored the television across the room, a large plasma screen that hung over a fireplace, and gawked a little at how nice her quarters were. It was a big house, fully furnished and new.
Her attention finally settled on the bag she’d brought and knew she’d have to unpack. She wanted her clothes from home but had to settle for the ones her father had bought at a large retail store. He’d tried to find high-end stores but Jessie had refused. Her father could be worse than her female friends when it came to picking out clothes. He couldn’t just sit back quietly while she shopped but instead had to make comments, especially when he didn’t agree with her choices.
She gripped the handle of the bag, stood and walked down the hallway. The first bedroom was generic, nice. She moved on to the second one. It was a big room, the master, and she grinned.
“I can get used to this,” she muttered. The height of the king-size bed lifted her eyebrows. “I’ll probably need a stepstool to climb on to that.” The room had a massive nine-drawer dresser and a flat-screen TV was sitting on it. It was probably a forty-inch TV. Cool. She grinned. Two nightstands finished off the furniture. She spun away, saw an open walk-in closet and a dark doorway.
The bathroom was huge. She gawked at the Jacuzzi tub taking up an entire corner and dropped her bag. She didn’t resist the urge to climb inside, sit and chuckle. Four people could fit in the thing. It had jets and she decided she’d take a bath instead of a shower.
“I need to get undressed first.” She didn’t want to move. It had been a really long day and her headache threatened to return when she felt a slight throbbing at her temples.
She lifted up a hand to gently touch the back of her head, found the bandage there and sighed loudly. Her life had changed because she’d been shot. Her job with the task force was history. She had a new home yet absolutely no idea what to expect. What she needed, she realized, was to at least get acquainted with her surroundings, starting with the rest of the house.
Jessie forced her body upright, decided it was time to explore her cottage and climbed out of the tub. There was a nice kitchen and open dining room near the living room. She eased open cupboards and drawers, learning ever
ything from silverware to dishes had been supplied. A gasp passed her parted lips when she opened the fridge to discover it had been stocked with enough food to feed a family of eight for a week, at least. The freezer was packed too with everything from ice cream to frozen meat.
* * * * *
Jessie cleaned up her dinner mess quickly and took one of the pain pills her doctor had prescribed. That bathtub was calling to her. She unpacked and grabbed a pair of boxers and a half shirt before returning to the bathroom. It didn’t take long at all to fill the big tub, strip and sink slowly into the warm wonderfulness of the bubbling Jacuzzi. The jets against her back were heavenly and she raised her feet, shoving them over two more jets opposite where she sat. The headache slowly faded as she tilted her head gently on the rim, her body relaxed and she released all her pent up stress.
“Oh, I’m never leaving,” she whispered aloud, her eyes closing. “This is the life.”
* * * * *
Justice glanced at his watch, impatient to leave the office but he’d been informed that a situation needed to be dealt with. He rubbed the back of his neck and thought of Jessie. She’d been dropped off at her home and by now she’d had time to get settled. He wanted to see her more than anything, including addressing whatever trouble had arisen.
A knock sounded at his door, it immediately opened and Fury and Tiger sauntered in. Both males appeared stressed and irritated as the door slammed—further proof of their bad moods. They collapsed into the chairs across from him.
“What’s going on?” He glanced at them.
“The usual,” Tiger muttered. “Death threats and we were served with a summons to appear in court.”
Fury snarled, a vicious sound, and pure rage darkened his features. “Ellie’s father is demanding she appear before a judge for mental competency.”
Disbelief gripped Justice. “What?”
“She had to cancel his visit. He’s angry and believes I want her cut off from her family.”
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