Six
“That’s kind of melodramatic,isn’t it?”
Sariel leveled Zan with a cool look. “Malik likes to paralyze his prey with his venom and then strip the flesh from their bones, eating them alive —and that is when he is in a jovial mood.”
“Jesus,” Hammer muttered. “You sure you don’t have any other relatives we can contact who’ll take you in? A distant cousin or something?”
Hurt flashed in his golden eyes, and was quickly gone. “My family is the reason I am here. But if you’ll kindly step aside and allow me to pass, I’ll no longer be your problem.”
Zan disagreed. “You will when we get dispatched to wherever you’ve caused a stir after being spotted by humans again. Bad plan.”
“I cannot imagine that all areas of your world are overrun by your kind.” His wings rustled and he negligently waved a hand. “Point me to one of those places and I’ll spend the last centuries of my life there.”
Kira wanted to ask how old he was, but the pain behind his declaration concerned her more. “Alone, and with no one to help if Malik locates you? I don’t think so.”
“When he finds me,” Sariel said with total surety. “And none of you will wish to be within leagues of me on that day. No, it’s best I go.”
“And I believe it’s in your best interests to stay.” She glanced at the guys, who didn’t look pleased. “What, you’re going to tell me you guys are a bunch of wimps who can’t take on one nasty Unseelie?”
“Nasty flesh-eating Unseelie.” Zan sighed, apparently deciding she wasn’t going to budge. “Fine. It’s not like we’ve ever backed down from a fight, anyway.”
“Great, it’s settled! And no arguments from you, Highness,” she said firmly. “I can’t think of anywhere better for you to be than here, where most of the folks aren’t human and can relate to your situation. Well, I can relate, but I’m human—there’s nothing special about me.”
He studied her, bemused. “I’m simply Sariel now, not royalty. And you’re wrong about your worth. If you possessed wings, you would be Seraphim—highest of the Angel Hierarchy, a being of pure light and love.”
Clearly, the wolves could use a lesson in charm from this guy.
“Well, aren’t you sweet? Maybe your manners will rub off on certain others around here.” She turned to Hammer. “Would you get Sariel some clothes? He can’t go parading around naked.” Darn it.
“Sure.” He eyed their newest resident. “Tall and slender? I’ll see what I can find.”
After he left, she addressed Sariel again. “If we let you out, do I have your word you won’t try to harm yourself again?” She should’ve thought of this before sending Hammer on his way.
The faery had the grace to appear ashamed. “Yes. I wouldn’t have succeeded anyway, not by attempting strangulation. The Fae are not so easily killed, and I dishonored my name even further by attempting such foolishness. I was feeling very hopeless and I still don’t see how things can end well for me. But I give you my word I won’t attempt to harm myself again.”
Eyeing him, she felt he was telling the truth. “I believe you, but not the part about dishonoring yourself. Everyone feels alone at times, like they have nowhere to turn and no options. But you have us now, so put your troubles aside for a while and let us take care of you. Okay?”
He hesitated, then smiled. “All right. I shall try.”
My goodness, what a lovely male specimen, no matter his species. Too bad that ill- tempered, possessive wolves were more her type. One tattooed, goateed, übermacho wolf in particular.
“Zander, is there another empty room he can occupy, perhaps one close to mine? I’ll take full responsibility for his liberation.”
“I don’t know, Kira,” he began, frowning.
“Nick gave me the chance to prove I could make a difference. How can I do that without a little cooperation? Work with me. Sariel won’t harm anyone here, and he wouldn’t have fought you all if he hadn’t felt threatened. Right?”
“This is true,” he said gravely. “I would never harm another unless in self-defense.”
She gave Zan her best pleading look, and after a few seconds, he relented—though he wasn’t thrilled.
“It’s not only your ass on the line if you’re wrong; it’s all of ours. But I’ll go with it, for now.” He gazed past her to Sariel. “You cause trouble, and you’re on your own. Nothing personal.”
The faery pressed his lips into a thin line and inclined his head. “I understand.”
Hammer returned, thrusting a pair of army green and brown camouflage pants and a green T-shirt, along with socks and boots, at Sariel. “Couldn’t find that fancy getup you were wearing. Best I could do on short notice.”
Sariel eyed the garments dubiously. Kira doubted a Fae prince had ever had an occasion to dress up like a clump of turf, but he was too nice to say so.
He took them, managing a polite, “Thank you.” Which earned some points of approval all around, however unintentional.
“But I can’t put them on unless these are removed.” He lifted his bound hands.
Here was the test. If she was wrong about Sariel, they were screwed. Zan looked to Hammer, who nodded. They were aboard. Zan removed a set of keys from his pocket and flipped through them. Finding the one he wanted, he unlocked the silver cuffs and the attached mesh gloves.
The Fae male flexed his hands, and then expressed his thanks. “Once again, you have my gratitude. Allow me a moment?”
She breathed a sigh of relief, and they slipped into the hallway, leaving the door cracked a bit so he could come on out when ready. Kira heard clothes and feathers rustling, some muttering, and finally he joined them. He was dressed except for the shirt, which he held aloft. She was struck again by how thin he was, and made a mental note to get him to eat.
“I can’t get it in place over my wings,” he explained. “Perhaps one of you might be of assistance?”
“Shoulda thought of that,” Hammer said. Reaching into his pocket, he fished out a small knife and flipped it open. “Hold it up so I can see the back.”
He did, and Kira grabbed the edge of the shirt, pulling the material taut. Hammer went to work and made two long vertical slits at the shoulder blades.
“Try it now.”
Sariel pulled on the shirt, and then Kira helped by gently guiding each wing through the slit. They were a bit tight going through and the fabric tore some, but once in place he stretched one, then the other, seeming satisfied. Kira stared, unable to get over their magnificent span and iridescence.
“Much better.” He swept his long, blue locks over one shoulder and regarded them with a regal tilt of his head. “To my quarters?”
On the way, they caused a little excitement. Dr. Mac and another woman wearing a white coat were walking with a couple of people wearing scrubs—one young man and a third woman—who might’ve been nurses or lab techs. The group stopped and stared, open-mouthed, at the entourage. The woman with Mac, the one in the lab coat, stepped into their path, her expression morphing from incredulity to anger.
“Excuse me, but what’s going on here?” Her eyes swept over Kira and then apparently dismissed her as unimportant in the matter. She turned her attention to Zander and Hammer as the others with her exchanged whispers. “Where do you think you’re going with Blue? I didn’t authorize any order for my patient to be moved.”
The woman’s chin lifted, dark eyes snapping with anger. Her tone left no doubt about who ruled this little corner of the compound. Behind her, Mackenzie gave Kira a nod, her expression encouraging. Kira returned the gesture and turned her attention back to Mac’s friend. She immediately recognized this woman’s type from her own work experience. The names and address had changed but the song remained the same. This steely woman with the short cap of black hair would be the alpha bitch, the one who could choose to make her life here a living hell, or not. Whether or not she was also a fair-minded person and well liked among her colleagues, Kira would soon find out.
Zan handled her smoothly. “Hey, Doc, good to see you. Now that our new pal is up and around, we have some introductions to make.” He waved the Fae male forward, who came to stand at his side. “Sariel, this is Dr. Melina Mallory. Melina, this is Sariel, prince of the Seelie High Court.”
“Displaced, as it happens.” Sariel swept a bow, and then regarded her steadily. “Doctor, we’ve met before, but it’s good to make your acquaintance under less stressful circumstances. Call me by my given name; it is much simpler.”
The doctor in question stared at the faery in amazement, mouth agape. Quickly, she regained her shaken composure. “Sariel. It’s good to see you up and about, and willing to talk. Who do we have to thank for this positive turn of events?” Though she sounded sincere, she also appeared a little wary.
Sariel waved a hand at Kira. “My new friend persuaded me to give your hospitality a chance to make a difference for me. I don’t know how long I can impose myself upon you all, but for the time being I will live here and abide by your leader’s rules.”
Dr. Mallory nodded thoughtfully. “I don’t think you’ll be sorry.”
A wave of emotion rolled off Sariel, catching Kira by surprise. Had she really felt a deep, profound regret and sadness emanating from the Fae prince, or was she simply projecting her own feelings? It had happened the first time she’d seen him weeping, his emotions pouring over her like a waterfall. It had happened when she met Jaxon, too. Before she could puzzle over this more, Dr. Mallory addressed her.
“You must be the new assistant Nick and Dr. Grant told me about this morning. You’re quite the busy bee already.” While not unfriendly, her tone held a note of censure as she slid a brief side glance toward Sariel. In doing so, she silently made it plain that while she wouldn’t take issue with Kira’s initiative in front of the others, she’d appreciate being kept in the loop in the future.
“I’m Kira Locke. I apologize if I’ve stepped on any toes,” she said, injecting as much sincerity into it as possible. “I simply couldn’t stand to see Sariel so unhappy and I wanted to help.”
“Yes, well, that’s understandable. Nobody wants that for anyone living here. We’ll discuss the other residents of Block R later, all right? I’ll give you some insight on them before you continue your work.” So the doctor was tough, but wasn’t the type to berate her subordinates in public.
Good to know. “That sounds fine. I’ll come down to see you this afternoon, if that’s okay by you.”
The older woman looked satisfied. “Buzz me first to make sure I’m not in the middle of something in the lab or with a patient, but that should work.”
“I’ll do that.”
“Nice to meet you, Kira. Sariel, I want to examine you after you’ve had a chance to settle into your room. How about after lunch. Three hours?”
“As you wish.” The faery leveled the doc with the full force of his brilliant smile, causing her to blink at him a couple of times before looking to Zan and Hammer.
Lust. It was suddenly radiating from the outwardly stoic doc, as well as a distinct wave of . . . fear? Vulnerability? Didn’t anyone else notice? Nobody seemed to. Kira stifled a giggle and thought she must be losing her mind—though if she hadn’t already, she was probably safe.
“Later,” Dr. Mallory said. Then she left, her staff following. Mac waved at Kira and hurried after them.
“Why do I feel like I just passed inspection?”
“Because you did,” Zan said with a chuckle. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he gave her a friendly, one-armed hug. “After getting the equivalent of a green light from Melina, the rest will be gravy.”
“If you say so.” Kira paused, recalling something in retrospect. “I sensed a lot of anger in Dr. Mallory. And oddly enough, a feeling of vulnerability, as though she’s not as in control as she’d like others to believe.” She glanced at the men, who were gazing at her intently. “What?”
Hammer crossed his arms over his massive chest. “Does that happen a lot?”
“Does what happen?” she asked, mystified.
“Getting ‘feelings’ from people.”
“No, I don’t think so.” She frowned, remembering. “At least not before I met Jaxon last night. Weird, huh? It’s probably this place and the sudden submersion into all this woo-woo weirdness frying my brain. No offense.”
Hammer looked at his friend and raised his brows, and the two seemed to share the same thought before Zan turned to her.
“Maybe you should mention this to Melina when you meet with her.”
“Why? Other than suffering from delusions because I talk to faery princes and think I see men shifting into wolves, I’m perfectly healthy,” she deadpanned.
Both men gave a quiet laugh, and then Zan answered. “I know you are because I’m a Healer and I’d know if you weren’t. Still, it won’t hurt to tell her and see what she has to say. Since the Institute of Parapsychology was established, Melina has made it her life’s goal to learn what makes every supernatural creature tick. Tell her, and then she can log your information in case it’s important.”
Kira thought he was going overboard, but didn’t see the harm. “Sure. Why not?”
“Have you ever had any leanings toward paranormal ability? Ghosts in your house, seeing things others don’t, anything at all?”
“Not in the slightest.” She frowned, recalling the voice she thought she’d heard when fleeing NewLife with the tissue samples, then dismissed it. Surely that had been her imagination. “But I’m a big fan of Ghost Hunters!” They gave her a blank look. “You know, on the Syfy Channel?”
“Um, we don’t watch much TV. And when we do, it’s probably not going to be anything dealing with the paranormal.”
“Kind of like folks who work in an ice cream parlor not eating the stuff because they’re sick of it,” Hammer put
in.
“Exactly.”
“Oh. Well, you’ll have to make an exception in this case. Great show. I’m completely addicted; even follow Jason and Grant on Twitter.” She grinned at their perplexed expressions.
“Never mind. Baby steps.”
“What are Syfy and TV?” Sariel asked in confusion. Everyone had forgotten him as he tried to follow their conversation.
“Jeez, what do they do for fun in the Seelie High Court?” she teased.
The Fae prince made a face. “Fun? Very little. My existence there was all about pomp and proper behavior. I believe humans call it ‘kissing ass.’ ”
The three of them laughed and Kira patted his arm. “Goes to prove some things don’t change no matter where you are.”
“I can believe that.” They walked Sariel to a room just a couple of doors from Kira’s. She and the others did their best to reassure the Seelie that he was safe and welcome.
“I’m staying there,” she said, pointing. “Dr. Grant is there, and Jaxon is across the hall. The others are close by as well. Don’t hesitate to knock if you need anything.”
“Or use the phone,” Zan put in. “There’s a list of extensions beside it.”
The faery stared at them helplessly. “The what?”
Zan smiled. “It’s a communication device that looks like a box. Come in. We’ll show you.” He led the way and Sariel trailed him, taking in his surroundings. Zan gave a short tutorial on how to use the phone, while Sariel studied the thing as if it were a strange insect and declared that in his world there was no need for such a contraption.
They simply used Mindspeak or flashed to another location to talk in person. Then he looked sad and she figured it had reminded him that he’d lost his home and people. Afterward, the trio spent some time showing the wide-eyed Fae some more earthly devices, like the oven, microwave, and refrigerator. Their new friend began to look more and more dejected.
“I cannot cook,” he murmured. “I don’t know how.”
“No worries.” Hammer clapped his shoulder. “The kitchen and appliances are here only in case you want to eat in private. We have a cafeteria and the cook is real fine. You won’t go hungry.”
“And that reminds me,” she began. “I heard you haven’t been eating.”
A slight flush colored the prince’s pale cheeks. “I wasn’t hungry. But I will not continue to shun your hospitality.”
She figured that meant he had been hungry and was too damned proud to admit it.
“Lunch is in a couple of hours,” Zan told him. “Why don’t you rest and I’ll make sure someone comes to get you right before we eat?”
Sariel nodded. “I would like that.”
“Will you be okay here?” She couldn’t help but worry. When she’d seen him earlier, he’d been the picture of abject misery, and now he was almost too calm. She hoped that didn’t mean he planned to do something drastic the minute their backs were turned.
“This will be most comfortable. Thank you.”
Zan started for the door. “We’ll get out of here, then. If you get tired of being alone, just come on out and go for a walk. You’re bound to see someone who can point you toward wherever you want to go.”
He swallowed hard, and looked to each of them, including them all in his next words. “I appreciate your kindness and I’m indebted. Somehow I will repay you.”
“Let’s not worry about that, huh?” Zan winked. “We’ll let you get some shut-eye.”
As they left, Kira glanced back over her shoulder to see Sariel standing in the middle of the small living area looking very alone. She didn’t really want to leave him but he needed time to adjust. He wouldn’t want someone hovering over him constantly after he’d given his word he wouldn’t harm himself. It would be a breach of trust in his eyes.
In the hallway, she voiced her concern as they walked. “What if he tries to leave?”
“We can’t stop him,” Zan answered. “And we can’t keep him caged. After you got him to open up, anyone could see that wasn’t right. But if he tries to walk out, he won’t get off the grounds without us knowing. We can try to persuade him again to stay.”
“If he translocates, though, he’s gone,” Hammer said. “Nothing we can do about that.”
Zan attempted to reassure her. “Try not to worry. He said he’d stay and he seems like a man of his word.”
She hoped so. The thought of such a gentle soul facing exile by himself was not acceptable. Kira thanked the guys for their help and they told her to call on them again if she needed to. She said she would and headed in the direction of the recreation room, forcing herself to look on the bright side. Sariel was liberated from that awful cell, and though bewildered, he would adjust. He’d be fine.
What should she do with herself until lunch? Dr. Mallory had made it crystal clear she wanted to speak with Kira before she took on any more of her duties. And really, she wasn’t officially an employee until Nick said so. She wasn’t worried about the background check as it was a simple formality. Not even an unpaid parking ticket marred her record.
Until last night, her life had been critically boring to the point it needed CPR. In the rec room she froze. Jax was sitting on the sofa, arms crossed over his chest, shit-kickers parked on the coffee table. He was watching a talk show on TV, but from his glazed expression, she had her doubts that he even knew what the topic was.
God, he was so wickedly sexy, her heart beat faster simply being near him. Short black hair sort of stuck out in that messy, spiky style that wasn’t as easy as it looked to pull off. Did he use gel? She’d love to offer to do the job for him, run her fingers through the black silk and mess it up real good. While he kissed and licked his merry way down her body, making places tingle that hadn’t in ages and desperately needed to—
“You going to come in or stand there all day?”
She hated when people threw out challenges like that. It was tempting to turn around and leave, but then she’d look like an ass. “Coming in, I guess. I’ve done my good deed for the morning and I don’t dare do any more without Dr. Mallory’s blessing.”
His eyes met hers as she moved to the sofa and plopped down. “Why? What’s going on?”
She shrugged. “Sariel is out. Zander and Hammer helped me.”
He frowned. “Who’s Sariel?”
“Oh, that’s right.” She snapped her fingers and glared at him. “You don’t know because you weren’t here to help me in Block R like you said you would!”
“Wait. You went there alone?”
“I just said your friends helped me. And Sariel is the name of the winged guy. He’s a Fae prince who was outcast from the Seelie Court. The lousy asswipes tossed him through the gate, and only because his daddy is some Unseelie guy with nasty eating habits.”
“You found out all of this while I was gone?” He eyed her in disbelief.
“Yep. All I did was talk to him, and I guess he was ready to get out of there.” She was pretty proud of herself for that one.
“He’s out?” Jax sat straight up in alarm. “Where is he?”
“Relax. He’s fine. He’s staying in the living quarters two doors down from me and across the hall from you. We got him settled in after he promised not to try and harm himself again. Said he couldn’t really do much damage, anyway, because the Fae aren’t easy to kill.”
“And you all believed him? Kira, he’s despondent,” he said in concern. “If he wants to die, he’ll find a way.”
That led to a horrible thought. “You don’t think he’d give himself up to his father, do you?”
“Hell, how should I know? He’s never said a word until you came.”
She worried her bottom lip with her teeth. “He promised to give life here a try. I believe him and so do the others.”
“Well, if he goes back on his word, there’s nothing we can do.”
“That’s what Zan said.”
“You and Zan are getting awfully chummy, aren’t you?” Leaning close, he sniffed her neck and shoulder. “He touched you.” A growl started low in his throat and only stopped because she smacked him in the arm. He blinked in surprise, the noise ceasing.
“Don’t you start that crap with me. He gave me a brotherly hug—that’s all—and it’s not any of your biz, anyway!” Leaning over, she sniffed his neck in return . . . and her blood started on a slow boil. “Seems I smell a woman on you, and it’s not me.”
Oh, that deer-in-the-headlights expression. Priceless.
“What are you talking about? You’re not a shifter, and I highly doubt you can discern scents like we can.”
Seething with righteous anger, she stood, fists balled at her sides. “You arrogant jackass, I don’t need a wolf’s nose to know cheap drugstore perfume when it hits me like a ton of bricks. I don’t have on any, and if I did I wouldn’t choose something that makes me gag.”
“Shit.” He rose to face her and held out his hands. “It’s not what you think.”
“Oh? You were attacked by a drive-by perfume spritzer at the mall?”
“No. It’s not—I didn’t .. .”
“You know what? It’s none of my business what you did or didn’t do. I don’t care.” Okay, that was a teensy lie. She did care, but she wasn’t about to let some womanizing jerk know it. “What is my business is who I decide to kiss or touch. You don’t have any right to demand that other men stay away from me and then come back smelling like a skank.”
“You mean skunk?”
“Read my lips—skank.” She gave him a hard shove in the center of his chest, and he took a step back. “And if I want to screw my happy way through the whole Alpha Pack team, there’s not a frigging thing you can do about it!”
“All right!” Ryon enthused from the doorway. “I’ve got the welcome banner right here for ya!”
Kira realized she’d pushed a Jax a bit too far about a half second before he grabbed her wrists and bared his canines. Yanked her flush against his hard body. And crushed his mouth to hers.