Meta Marshal Service 1

by B N Miles

  But he knew that would only make the Need much worse. He needed to build up his tolerance again. If he went down the path of sating the Need right away, or burying it with more magic use, then he’d never get a handle on it.

  Once, a long time ago, Jared would touch the priori and feel almost nothing afterward.

  But he wasn’t that guy anymore. And he was thankful for it every day. What it took to get to that point was the reason he worked for the Marshals.

  “Come on,” he said, leading her to the office. He took off his jacket, soot-stained and torn in a few places, and draped them over the cuffs. It didn’t look natural, and her browns looked out of place, but it was the best he could do on short notice. “Are you going to make this hard for me?”

  “Nope,” she said. “Not at all. This is way better than going to prison.”

  He gave her a look as they stepped into the office.

  The guy behind the desk was sallow and bored, but he took Jared’s card and gave them a room key without any trouble. Jared was tempted to get two rooms, but he knew he couldn’t keep an eye on Cassie that way. So instead, he opted for two twin beds.

  They headed back outside and up the stairs. The room was toward the back, just near the back staircase, which he appreciated. Jared let them inside and kicked the door shut behind him.

  Cassie walked over to the first bed and jumped on it. She laughed and bounced, then looked at Jared. Her hair spilled all around her, and he could see her body through the thin cotton clothes. Her bare, perky breasts flashed through his mind, and his Need surged.

  But he turned away. “I’m showering,” he said. “You’re up next.”

  “Can I get some fresh clothes?” she asked. “Or at least some underwear.”

  He paused and frowned. “I don’t know,” he said. “We could get you something… but I’m not supposed to leave here with you. This is already way outside of regulation.”

  “So then what’s the harm?”

  He considered that, but shook his head. “No, sorry. I appreciate you helping me back there, but I can’t take the risk.”

  She sighed. “Yeah, I get it.”

  “Look, just stay there, okay? I’m going to rinse off, then it’ll be your turn.”

  “With these cuffs on?”

  He gave her a look. “Don’t push it.” He pushed the bolt on the front door closed. “Please don’t try to run. You won’t get far and I’m tired.”

  “Yes, sir.” She gave him an annoyed look. “You think I’m an idiot, don’t you?”

  “No,” he said. “I think you’re desperate.” He walked into the bathroom and left the door open a crack. It was dingy and old, but looked clean enough. He started the shower and sat on the toilet lid, staring down at the floor.

  He felt the Need move through him in waves. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the void, on the nothingness. He went through the meditation technique he’d learned so long ago to help cope with his hunger. At first, it didn’t do much. He found it hard to keep the void in his mind. But slowly, he felt himself drift into it, almost like going into sleep, and his mind settled.

  He imagined dumping his hunger into that void. He imagined releasing all his Need, all his longing and desires. The void took it all.

  When he finished, his lifted his head and felt lighter. The Need was still there, but it was quieter. He looked up and started as Cassie leaned against the bathroom doorframe.

  “You’re taking forever,” she said. “I got worried.”

  “Sorry.” He frowned. “How long have I been in here?”

  “Twenty minutes.”

  He blinked. “Really?”

  “You were meditating,” she said. It wasn’t a question.

  He watched her carefully. “I was.”

  “You’re feeling it, aren’t you?”

  He wasn’t sure how to answer. The Need wasn’t a secret, not exactly. But most people didn’t talk about it. The Magi families worked hard to keep the Need at bay and acted like it was no big deal. If the Meta world knew the extent of the Need, they’d realize that the Magi families could be exploited.

  So far, generations of work, money, and consolidated power have kept the Magi in control.

  But Jared felt far from controlled.

  “Yes,” he said. “And it’s not polite to talk about.”

  “Sorry. Where I come from, there aren’t a lot of magicians.”

  He winced at the term. “We prefer Magi.”

  “Sure, whatever.” She tilted her head. “I always heard that it was just a rumor. You know what I mean? I never met a magician that could— Oh, sorry, Magi.”

  “It’s not a rumor,” Jared said. “Just something we don’t like to talk about.”

  “Does it… hurt?”

  Her question was so innocent that he couldn’t help but laugh. She glared at him, annoyed at his response. “Sorry,” he said. “But no, not really. Not in a physical way, at least.”

  “What’s it like?”

  “I don’t want to talk about this.”

  She shrugged. “Okay, whatever. I was just going to offer to help, if I can.”

  He stared at her and the Need flared. God, she could help. She absolutely could help. Just let him get a taste of her supple body and…

  “No,” he said, standing. “Look, you shower. I’ll go get you some clothes.”

  She blinked. “Really?”

  “Really.” He pushed past her and into the main room. She glared at him but he ignored her. He walked to his bag, opened it, and rummaged through before coming up with a small leather case. He unzipped it, ignored the large handheld device with the flat, blank screen, and held up a tiny square chip. “Wear this.”

  She looked at it. “What is that?”

  “Tracking device. Normally used for cars and stuff, but it’ll work fine on you.

  “I’m not wearing that.”

  “Yes, you are. Because I’m going to take off your cuffs.”

  She stared at him for a long moment. Neither of them spoke. “Really?”

  “Really. But I’m attaching this to your back. It won’t break and it won’t come off until I release it.” He showed her the command module. “I’ll keep an eye on you with this. Get it?”

  “Will it hurt?”

  “Probably not,” he said, and walked over to her. “Turn around.”

  She obeyed, showing her back. He hesitated, feeling his hunger pulse, but he pushed it back. He lifted up her shirt, showing off her smooth, beautiful back. He removed the backing from the chip and pressed it down between her shoulder blades, where it would be hard for her to reach. He pushed it until the adhesive stuck.

  When he was done, he let her shirt fall.

  “No pain,” she said and wiggled her shoulders. “So you can track me now, huh?”

  “Shower and stay inside. I’ll be back with food and clothes.”

  “You’re my hero,” she said, grinning.

  He glared at her. “Don’t get used to it. Tomorrow, you’re going to Max.”

  Her smile disappeared. “No need to be a dick about it.”

  Jared reached into his pocket and took out his ID card. He swiped it through the slat on the cuffs and they opened with a click. She sighed as they came off and rubbed her wrists.

  “Be good. I’ll be back.”

  She watched him as he walked to the door. He considered changing into something different but he had to get out of that room. He was afraid of what he’d do if he were around when she undressed to shower.

  “Jared,” she said.

  He looked at her. “Yeah?”

  “Thanks.” She smiled again. “I know I’m going back to Max. I’ll try not to give you a hard time.”

  He nodded once. “Yeah. I appreciate that.”

  He left without another word.

  Once out of the room, he realized he had no car and no clue where to go to get women’s clothes. But fortunately, he had a phone.

  He ordered an Uber, googled
places to eat, found a nearby TJ Maxx, and sat in the parking lot to wait.

  She’d be fine. She didn’t run the first time, and she wasn’t wearing a tracker then. She wouldn’t run this time.

  He had to keep telling himself that.

  7

  He came back a couple hours later and found her in bed. He tossed her the fresh clothes and let her change before they ate a wonderful meal of burgers and fries. When it was done, he put her cuffs back on.

  “Taking off the tracker?” she asked.

  “Nope. That stays.”

  She huffed. “Come on.”

  “Sorry. You probably shouldn’t have let me put it on you.”

  “You really can be a dick, you know that?”

  He shrugged. It was getting late, and his body was exhausted. He showered, changed into clean clothes, and crawled into bed.

  “Get some sleep,” he ordered. “Tomorrow will be fun.”

  She said nothing, just rolled over.

  He turned out the light and stared up at the ceiling.

  For years, the Marshal Service had been a quiet gig. He came to the office, did his paperwork, and transported criminals about once every month. It was glorious, comforting, perfectly routine.

  It was everything he craved after years of living like a Magi.

  His phone rang early the next morning. He hadn’t even realized he’d fallen asleep. His body ached all over and he was stiff as he scrambled to answer the call. The clock showed it was just past six in the morning. Cassie was still in bed and didn’t stir as he got up and paced across the room. “Hello?” he grunted.

  “Good morning, son.” Wyatt’s voice was chipper. “How are you today?”

  “I’m great, sir. Just stuck in some crappy motel with a prisoner.”

  “An especially dangerous prisoner,” he added and laughed. “Come on, isn’t this why you signed up for the Marshals? Probably watched all those cowboy movies.”

  “No, sir,” Jared said. “I signed on for the paperwork.”

  Wyatt snorted his laugher. “Good one. Yeah, real good. Listen son, I’m nearby and it’s time to debrief.”

  He frowned. “You’re here, sir?”

  “Drove half the fucking night, but yes, I’m here. We need to go over the situation.”

  “I thought I’d transport the girl to Max today and be home by dinner.”

  Wyatt was quiet for a long moment and Jared resisted the urge to groan.

  “Let’s meet for breakfast. I’ll be down in the parking lot in an hour.”

  “Yes, sir. We’ll see you then.”

  He hung up. Jared sighed and threw his phone back into the bed. When he looked over, Cassie was sitting up and watching him.

  She’d gone to sleep in a simple white t-shirt and her brown bottoms. She frowned at him and somehow looked beautiful, despite the messy bedhead. At least his Need wasn’t screaming at him anymore. If he didn’t use magic for another day or two, the Need would abate on its own. But at least now it was manageable.

  “Morning,” he said. “Let’s get up and showered. You’re going to meet my boss today.”

  She frowned at him. “Really?”

  “Really.”

  “I thought you were dragging me back to prison.”

  “I still am,” he said. “Just not yet. You’ll get breakfast first.”

  She beamed at him. “I love breakfast.”

  “Good to know.”

  “Pancakes? Waffles?”

  “Sure, whatever you want.”

  She sighed with pleasure. “Okay. I call first shower.” She jumped out of bed, and Jared watched her with a frown.

  He couldn’t wait to drop her off at prison and move on with his life.

  Captain Wyatt met them downstairs exactly one hour after their phone call. He was a tall man, about Jared’s height, with graying hair, a bushy mustache, and the hard-bitten look of a man that had seen a thing or two. He grunted at their approach, and his eyes looked over Cassie. She was wearing a clean gray crew neck sweatshirt and form fitting black tights. Jared had no clue what else to get her, and they seemed appropriate.

  The Captain frowned and gestured for her to get in the back. Jared helped her climb in, then joined Wyatt up front.

  “Well,” Wyatt said. “Yesterday was fun.”

  “For you, maybe.”

  Wyatt glanced at him. “How was last night?”

  Jared was very aware of Cassie sitting in the back and listening to every word. “She was good, sir.”

  “No escape attempts?”

  “No, sir. She was helpful yesterday.”

  He arched an eyebrow. “You mentioned that.”

  “I know it was a risk, sir. But it was all I could handle just to keep my barriers up.”

  He nodded as he pulled into traffic. “I understand.”

  “So I let her off the leash. And she came back.”

  “I’m not a dog,” she grumbled. “And I’m right here, you know.”

  Jared ignored her. “That won some good will, at least in my book.”

  Wyatt frowned at the traffic in front of them and said nothing.

  They drove on in silence. Jared didn’t understand his Captain’s reaction to all this. He kept saying that Cassie was dangerous, but as far as he could tell, Cassie was just another Meta. He didn’t know what landed her in prison, or why the system wanted her moved to Max, but she seemed so… harmless.

  That was the problem with Metas sometimes. So many of them just seemed human. The ones that didn’t either lived far away from people in remote places, or they paid extravagant prices to the Magi families for enchantments to hide their appearance. That way, nobody broke the Accord, the ancient pact between the Magi families and the Metas. So sometimes it was easy to forget that Metas could do things regular humans couldn’t ever dream of. They were, after all, the children of gods.

  Cassie seemed like a normal human girl. She smiled and laughed, and Jared never got a hint of danger.

  But then again, he could still see that huge fox ripping the Dryad to pieces.

  They parked in front of a quiet diner down the road from the Turnpike entrance. Wyatt got out and strode toward the door, leaving Cassie alone with Jared for a moment.

  “He’s a good man,” Jared said without looking back at her.

  “I’m not sure that matters,” she said. “I’m going back to prison no matter what.”

  He didn’t answer. She was right about that, but something was bothering him. He got out and went around to the back. Cassie looked up at him and he leaned down, swiping his card across her cuffs. They unlocked and she smiled, a hint of surprise in her eyes.

  “Why?” she asked.

  “Can’t eat pancakes with cuffs on,” he said. “And you still have the tracker on.”

  “You don’t know I’ll be a good girl in there.” She grinned at him, but her smile was sly and inviting.

  “Do your best. Come on.” He helped her out of the car and fell short of escorting her up to the diner. They walked together and stepped inside. Wyatt was already sitting at a booth and he frowned as they approached.

  “Is that a good idea?” he asked, looking at Cassie.

  “She’s fine,” Jared said.

  Cassie sat down and slid in. Jared sat next to her. Captain Wyatt frowned at the pair of them but just shook his head. When the waitress came over, everyone got coffee.

  “She didn’t run last time,” Jared said. “And where’s she going to go this time?”

  “That’s not the point.”

  “I think it is,” Jared said. “I mean, we can’t bring her in here with cuffs on and we can’t just leave her out in the car.”

  Wyatt let out a sigh. “Fine. But she’s your responsibility.”

  “I’m right here,” she said again, louder this time. “And if it counts for anything, I don’t plan on running.”

  Wyatt gave her a flat stare. “It doesn’t.”

  The waitress came back with coffee and took everyo
ne’s order. Jared just wanted eggs and toast while Cassie asked for every different kind of pancake on the menu.

  “You know we have ten different varieties,” the waitress said.

  “One of each, please.” Cassie gave her a pleasant, charming smile.

  Wyatt rolled his eyes and asked for a western omelet.

  “We need to talk about our missing prisoner,” Wyatt said once the waitress was gone.

  Jared nodded and sipped his coffee. It was hot and just about fine.

  “Sir, how could they have ripped a hole in the transport? Isn’t that thing enchanted out the asshole?”

  He nodded. “I think they used conventional weapons.”

  Jared snorted. “And it wasn’t enchanted against those?”

  “Apparently nobody thought of that.” He looked annoyed as he sipped his own coffee. “They fired a rocket-propelled grenade, blew a damn hole in the side. It should’ve killed you, and would’ve if you hadn’t used magic.”

  Jared nodded. He remembered the world rocking sideways, but it was swallowed by the priori flowing through him.

  “What do you know about the prison that escaped?” Wyatt asked.

  “Not much,” Jared said. “His file was all blacked out. I know he’s a member of a small clan with holdings in the hills around here, but that’s about it.” Jared glanced at Cassie. “Same with her.”

  She batted her eyelashes at him and said nothing.

  “The Dryad’s name is Ferric Dorvahn. The Dorvahns are a small but strong clan. They’ve made a fortune selling organic vegetables in the last twenty years, so it was a surprise when one of their clan decided to step out of line. They’re wealthy and comfortable. You don’t find comfortable Metas committing crimes.”

  “What happened with him?” Jared asked.

  Wyatt glanced at Cassie but she was putting on a good show of staring at her fingernails and pretending to ignore them. He grunted and pushed on.

  “I can’t tell you much,” he said. “Because I don’t know much. But the basics are, he was caught stealing from a Magi family.”