Saving Penelope (The Knights Book 1)

by Zoe Jane Fox

  “Vampires are real?” she asks, looking nervous, but thankfully no longer scared.

  “Yes,” I say while standing up so we can make our way downstairs.

  “Wow, Can they do anything cool? Read minds? Turn into a bat? She asks excitedly

  Laughing I tell her "No. Read minds, yes, but Bastian doesn't like to do it without permission unless it's necessary. And no." She seems to be ok with this new information.

  "OK, well then let's go introduce me to him and find out why he's here." She says.

  Once again shocking me with how quickly she is to accept everything I have thrown at her in such a short amount of time. My mate is strong and brave, my bear is happy with that and can't wait until we are mated so he can play with her bear.

  7

  Penelope

  As we make our way down the stairs, I'm nervous and excited at the same time. If I'm being honest a little scared. Not that Bastian would hurt me, I trust Monroe when he says he won't. It's the fact he wants to talk about who was after me. As far as I know, Monroe didn't tell anyone. So How does he know? I stop myself from thinking more on that, so I'm not so scared, focusing on the fact I'm about to meet a freaking vampire! Vampires are real. I had no idea tonight was going to turn out this way. Meeting a bear shifter and vampire in one night. I wonder if next, he'll introduce me to a fairy. Then I snort picturing how that would go. Monroe looks down at me with a smile, I can see he wants to know what made me laugh. I shake my head letting him know I'm not ready to tell him my crazy thoughts because then he might not want me as a mate. I'm shocked for a second with that realization. I want to be his mate. There's no time to talk about that now so I decide to talk to Monroe after Bastian leaves. We turn the corner, going into his office, I see there is a man sitting at the desk with his back to us. He stands, then turns around facing us, giving me, my first look at a real vampire! He has the brightest blue eyes I've ever seen that are almost glowing, no wonder Monroe had to tell me he was a vampire before I met him. Bastian has brownish reddish hair that is so long it’s touching his shoulders. He's handsome for a dead guy, but he doesn't look dead to me. I hear a growl from beside me, I wonder what Monroe is growling about now, the man always seems to be growling.

  "That would be because I'm not dead," Bastian says with a smirk on his face.

  I turn towards Monroe and ask “ I thought you said he doesn’t read minds without permission?”

  "You said that last bit out loud, mate." He says grumpily.

  I'm mortified. I just said this man is handsome, for a dead guy, out loud seconds after meeting him! Gosh, I'm such a spaz. I turn and run out of the room and go in the kitchen, needing a breather for a moment and possibly to raid his kitchen for alcohol so I can have some courage to face them both again. I'm banging cabinet doors shut while I'm on my search when I hear a cough from behind me. I turn around to see both Monroe and Bastian standing there with smiles on their faces. Before they can say anything I rush out "Hi, you must be Bastian! It's nice to meet you, I'm Penny" I'm going to act like what happened back in the office didn't happen. Monroe is smiling at me like he is happy with my decision and walks over wrapping his arms around my waist.

  "It's lovely to meet you too Penny," Bastian says with a wink.

  Monroe asks him if he would like something to drink, it has me wondering if he's asking him if he wants a drink then it must be true that he's not dead right? But then again, what do I know? I didn't think shifters and vampires were real. Monroe needs to seriously tell me more information later on.

  "I have someone on the inside of the St Louis County PD. For a while, they thought this person was a human killing the women so they didn't bother bringing me in. Then they got a new detective who happens to a wolf." Bastian says, taking a deep breath like he's trying to wrap his head around what he's about to say. Meanwhile, all I'm thinking is, of course, there are wolves too. "He smelled a vampire on the scene, then contacted me to see what I thought. Unfortunately, it was true and I picked up the scent of a vamp as well, but we're still not sure if it’s a rogue or human." he finishes.

  Monroe starts growling and squeezing me a little tighter to him. I turn in his arms and place a kiss on his chest and that seems to calm him down a bit.

  “How long have you been after this guy?” Monroe asks.

  Bastian rubs a hand over his hair before answering, "Three months."

  Monroe lets loose a bunch of curses before letting go of me to start pacing the kitchen. I'm not sure why he's so pissed, cases take time. It's not always solved in twenty-four hours as you see on those criminal television shows. I decide to tell this to Monroe, who stops pacing when he looks at me, I see so much anger and fear in his eyes, I know the anger isn't at me but who is after me.

  "What you don't get Penelope, is Bastian is good at what he does, I've never heard of him taking longer than two weeks to catch a rogue," Monroe says.

  Then goes back to pacing the kitchen. I'll be honest, that scares me, but we have to figure this out so I can stay alive, to be his mate.

  "Bastian, one thing that I don't get is, Monroe didn't tell anyone outside of his men what exactly was going on except that I wasn’t safe. How did you know about all this and where to find us?" I ask while I decide to start doing something to eat for us since it seems like we won't be going back to bed anytime soon.

  "I have a system set up on my computer, thanks to Mike, anytime someone looks into what I'm looking for it will ping, letting me know. I saw someone was searching for a man chasing women in their early twenties come up, I noticed it came from Mike so I called him up and had a chat." Bastian says. Oh well, that's pretty cool and handy.

  Monroe and Bastian sit down at the table, sharing information while I finish up cooking us some eggs and pancakes. After we're all done eating the guys are cleaning up when Monroe's phone goes off, everything goes quiet, unsure of who is calling at four in the morning. I hear "Yeah? That's great, come on over and bring him." He hangs up.

  I wonder who is coming over, It's bad enough I met Bastian in Monroe's clothes, how many more people are going to meet me this way? I'm starting to panic about it when Monroe comes over to me leaning down, placing a kiss on my lips. It was short and sweet leaving me wanting more. When I try to get another kiss, he chuckles.

  "Baby, that was Hank. He has Doctor and believes it's safe enough to bring him over." Monroe says with a smile.

  I am so excited I let a squeal and clap my hands while saying "Thank you Thank you Thank you!!" Standing up giving Monroe a hug and stretching up on my toes to try and give him a kiss.

  "I hate to break up such a sweet moment, but why is she so excited a doctor is coming? Is she hurt?" Bastian asks.

  "No. That's my dog's name, " I say with a laugh.

  He nods his head and asks “From that show?” I tell him yes and decide to go upstairs and change into my jeans before Hank and Doctor shows up. Maybe even the wolf will stop by? Laughing to myself, I leave the room.

  8

  Monroe

  I watch Penelope leave the room, I want to go after her, but I understand she wants to change her clothes. I turn around to grab some more coffee, I see Bastian looking at me funny. “What?” I ask while filling up my cup and pouring in some sugar.

  "It's weird seeing you like this, don't get me wrong, I'm happy for you. It's just…. Different" He says.

  I know what he means it would be weird seeing him with a mate, being all lovey-dovey after seeing each other lonely and miserable for so long. I lift a cup to him silently asking if he wants one, he nods his head. I pour the coffee in the mug, then pass it to him as I walk to the living room to have a seat on the couch before asking him for more info on this guy. He tells me that it's the strangest rogue killings he's ever seen, normally a rogue drains their victims, his guy isn't doing that. We both look to the stairs knowing that Penelope is coming back down and we need to change the subject so she doesn’t hear us. I feel bad for doing it, but I don't want her to be fright
ened all the time. I'm her mate, it's my job to protect her. She comes down the stairs, I stand up walking to her running my fingers through her hair, pulling her slightly to me so I can kiss her. It was only five minutes she was gone, but I missed her, my bear missed her too. Talking about her stalker again makes me want to keep her by my side at all times. She pulls back first this time smiling at me. Right as I'm about to ask her if she wants some coffee when my phone beeps letting me know someone is at the gate. When I see it’s Hank, I walk towards the front door getting ready to open it. I see Penelope bouncing on the balls of her feet beside me, looking so fucking adorable, I know she is excited to be back with her dog. I can't wait until we have cubs, then I can watch her play with them all the time. I open the door right as Hank comes up the stairs with this goofy looking dog with an underbite, I think it’s a Boston Terrier. He is black and white with a short snout that makes him sound like he's snorting as he's climbing up the steps. I step back while holding the door open to let them in. The moment Doctor sees Penelope he starts going crazy, running in circles around her and panting heavily.

  "Come to Mama" Penelope coos at Doctor. Bending down slightly like they have been doing this for years he runs, then jumps she catches him easily and brings him to her chest giving him a hug.

  "Thank you for getting him and saving him. I hope he wasn't too much of a trouble for you until you could bring him to me." She says to Hank.

  "No problem, he was fine for me." When she raises an eyebrow at Hank he says with a laugh, "Ok ok, he was a little bit crazy and tore all my couch cushions off my couch and peed on my floor"

  " That's more like it. I'm sorry about that, I've only had him a few months and he doesn't like to be separated and goes crazy once I'm back home." She says laughing. She puts Doctor down and heads to the kitchen to get him some water.

  "Everything ok at her apartment?" I ask Hank now that she’s out of the room.

  "Everything was fine, but I thought I smelled a vamp. It was very faint like it had been a few days. I took the dog to a park for a walk and then drove around until I was sure I wasn't being followed. I stopped by my place for a bit, then changed cars before heading this way." He says, not knowing why Bastian is here.

  My bear is growling and pacing, not liking someone was in our mates home. I turn to Bastian asking if he knows if there were signs of a rogue going into the other victim's homes before the attacks.

  “Yes, I think that’s part of his MO. I don’t understand why.” Bastian says.

  "What if he is going to their homes, drinking from them, but not draining them, then heals the wound so no one notices it?" Hanks asks.

  I know it’s a good question, but my bear and I don't like it, I feel a partial shift coming on, I take a couple of deep breaths calming down so I don’t scare Penelope. Bastian said he will call his informant asking them to look at the Coroner's report to see if there's any missing blood that's noticeable. I'm thankful Penelope is busy playing with her dog, not hearing this because I'm sure she would faint again at hearing that. The doorbell rings, I know exactly who it is. There's only a handful of people who can just come up to the door without going through the gate. I'm not ready to share her with them, but it's too late now.

  9

  Penelope

  Monroe thinks I can't hear what he, Hank and Bastian are talking about, but I'm not deaf. Plus, they're not really being quiet. I'm happy to see Doctor and that he is ok. I keep my focus on him instead of looking at the guys talking but still listening. The doorbell rings, causing Doctor to start barking and running around. He hasn't been around this many people before. You can tell he clearly loves it, forgetting about being home alone. Monroe sighs as he opens the front door, then in walks Natalie, a man I'm assuming is his dad because he looks very similar but older. Behind his parents comes in four guys, who must be his brothers. Natalie bends down petting Doctor.

  "Hi, aren't you just a little cutie! Where is your mama?" She asks Doctor. Then starts looking around the house until she spots me. "There you are, dear!! Penny I'd like you to meet my mate, Andrew." Natalie says cheerfully. I've noticed even in a serious situation she always seems to be cheerful.

  "Hi Andrew, It's nice to meet you," I say to his dad with a smile, adapting some of Natalie's cheer.

  He sticks his hand out making me think he is going to shake my hand, but instead pulls me in a hug squeezing tight.

  "Penny, it is an honor to meet you and I'm so thankful my son has found his mate. If only the other four bozos would too." He says. When he releases me, I turn to see all the guys laughing and talking. As if sensing me, Monroe turns around looking at me then slowly makes his way over to where I'm standing. He pulls me to him leaning his head down, giving me a sweet kiss before moving toward my ear.

  "You are so beautiful, I don't want to share you with everyone yet." He whispers before pulling back. He looks me in the eyes for a moment, seeing how curious, I am about all everyone.

  "Ok, fine, let me introduce you to my brothers. This small runt right here is my youngest brother Ian." He says, pointing to a man who looks like a perfect mix of his mom and dad, but I don't get why he called him a runt because he's still taller than me. Next, he points to the brother that looks very similar to Monroe and tells me his name is Jace. Then he points to the twins telling me they are Rhys and Damon. They all say hi, taking turns giving me a hug. Then Monroe pulls me away from them.

  "That's enough touching my mate. Now would you like to tell me why you all decided to come over at six in the morning?" He says with a growl in his voice.

  Well, that was rude of him. So I elbow him in his side telling him "Don't be rude to your family, it's not nice." He is mumbling something about his mate not being nice. I decide to ignore him turning to his family asking if they want anything to drink. Natalie says the boys are grown, they can get their own damn drinks while we go sit on the couch. Doctor runs over to us jumping up on the couch with us trying to get some attention.

  “I’m taking it Monroe told you about everything? Are you ok with being his mate?” Natalie asks while petting Doctor.

  "Well, I wouldn't say everything there are some things I think he left out, but yes, he explained that you're all bear shifters," I say. Before looking across the room at Monroe and see him talking to his family and friends. Turning back to Natalie, I don't want to tell her I want to be Monroe's mate before I tell him so I tell her what I'm feeling.

  "I'm not saying no but I haven't said yes yet either. It's a lot to take in, right now I'm worried about the guy after me." I said quietly so no one hears me, although I'm sure they all can hear me because as I started saying that last part everyone quieted down.

  "Dear, I promise you on my life, my son will do everything he can to not let that man harm a hair on your body," Natalie says. She sounds so sure of it. Deep down I know Monroe will protect me, he has shown me that since the moment I ran into him on the dance floor. I'm not sure what to say back to her so I let the conversation drop. I'm starting to get tired from everything that happened last night, that little bit of sleep didn't help. I lay my head on the back of the couch watching Monroe talk with everyone.

  10

  Monroe

  I notice I don't hear Penelope and Ma talking anymore, so I turn around to look for her when I see she is passed out on the couch. I feel horrible for keeping her up all night. I tell everyone to be quiet, I walk over to the couch, picking up Penelope to carry her up the stairs to our room. When I lay her on the bed, she reaches out, grabbing me not wanting to let me go. I lay down with her for a few moments until I know she's deep asleep, I slide out from the bed quietly making my way out of the room. Once I'm downstairs, I see everyone is on the couch talking about what has happened last night and how they plan to help out. Ma says she is going to go shopping for clothes and personal items Penelope might need. Then leaves the house with my Pa following right behind her saying he will check in with me later when they drop off their purchases. Hank comes up to me
asking what he needs to do. I tell him to head back to her place while keeping an eye on it, not to hesitate to call me if anything comes up.

  “Hey Damon, would you mind keeping an eye on the land while you’re out there?” I ask. Damon is the most in touch with his bear out of everyone in the family. Liking to spend most of his time, outside of working at his architect firm in bear form running through the woods that make up my family’s land.

  "You got it, bro." He says as he gets up leaving the house.

  I finally make my way to the couch with the others that are still here. Rhys says he needs to head out to get some sleep before he has to go clean up his bar before opening. Apparently yesterday he had a pipe break, flooding his stockroom. That’s why Pa wasn’t at the wedding with Ma last night, he was helping Rhys, moving boxes of alcohol to his office, before working on fixing the pipe. Rhys says he will check back in later to see if I need anything. I turn to Jace, who works with me at Knightly Security.

  "I need you to make some calls to the guys we left at the venue, see if there is still no sign of this guy. Have some canvas the area, leaving only two men at the venue at a time until he is found," I say.

  "Got it. You want me to run by the office to make sure everything there is ok?" he asks.

  “Yes. If there's anything that needs my attention, to handle it for me, my mate is my number one priority, I'm staying with her until this guy is caught.” I reply.

  I don’t give a shit what anyone thinks my mate will always come first. Plus Jace is qualified to handle everything I am, it’s about time he picks up more responsibilities. Jace leaves shortly after our talk, for just a few moments it's just Bastian, Doctor and myself sitting on the couch in silence. Doctor is snoring loudly for such a little dog, causing me to smile. I can see why she fell in love with him and wanted to make sure he was safe as well. Finally, the silence is starting to bother me.