Primal Bargains

by Raleigh Davis

  I leave to go do what I should be doing, which is not sharing confidences with the woman living with me.

  Although I’m going to look more into her parents and this fucking sociopath that harassed her. Tess should never have to deal with that kind of guilt, not ever again.

  Chapter 16

  “So I’m finally allowed into the holy of holies?” Victoria asks as she looks around the main room on the ground floor.

  “You’ve been here before.” I don’t know why, but her snark about the place kind of irritates me.

  Maybe because I still have to admit to her what I did with Gideon last night. She’s going to be worried and upset, and I can’t blame her.

  But I also can’t regret it. The man has magic fingers. I haven’t come that hard since… ever. And he didn’t even get my clothes off.

  “Yeah, and I almost came again last night,” Victoria says.

  That had taken some quick talking when Victoria had called in a panic. I assured her that I was fine, that Gideon and I had talked things over and everything was fine. Perfectly fine.

  Telling her that I’d finally seen his face and he was handsome as ever helped to distract her. And then I’d told her most of what Gideon had confessed to me, which had really distracted her.

  I left out the orgasm. I’ve really got to tell her. Soon.

  I clear my throat, focus my attention back on the job. “I’ve already done the panels in here, but there are some to finish in the library and kitchen. I set up a control room next to the library—all the outdoor stuff is running on the machines there.”

  “Sensors, cameras, lights?”

  I nod. “And I put our facial-recognition software on the camera system. So if someone tries again, we can ID them.”

  “Unless they’re wearing a mask.” Victoria looks sideways at me. “Was there any video of the first break-in?”

  “There is, and I just got access to it this morning. They were wearing a ski mask,” I say resignedly. “Which they’ll probably do again.”

  “But if they don’t…”

  “Fingers crossed.” It’s all I can do, because I’m not sure how else to catch this would-be thief. Unless… “What if they said something?” I ask myself.

  “What?”

  “He’s got voice recognition up there,” I explain. “If the intruder said something, we might be able to get him through voice recognition.”

  “Possibly, if they did speak. But those databases aren’t as extensive as the facial ones.”

  She’s right, but it’s worth a shot. “Let’s look over the footage in the control room.”

  When we walk in, Gulizar says, “Welcome. I’m Gulizar, the home control system. And you are?”

  Victoria pauses in the doorway, looking up at the speakers in the ceiling. “Um, Victoria Shepherd. Hi.”

  “Rustem named her,” I say quietly to Victoria. “She’s so happy to have the panels up and running again so she can operate throughout the house.”

  Victoria nods as if none of that makes sense but she’s not going to question it.

  I’ve done some redesigning in the room Gideon’s let me have for all the security systems—it’s very high-tech James Bond now, with low, blue lights, sleek furniture, and everything arranged around a large main screen.

  Victoria starts to laugh when she sees it. “You’ve wanted to do something like this for a long time.”

  I grin. “I wasn’t going to pass up this chance. I’ve dreamed of building a security system like this one.”

  Victoria’s smile drops. “And being held captive? And running in the middle of the night and almost being killed?”

  I sigh as I bring up the security footage. “The car thing was an accident.”

  “And the rest of it? You said his face was just fine. And you’re not moving out.”

  “It’s just easier,” I say weakly. “He wants it done quickly. And he’s paid part of the invoice already.”

  That was a huge relief to see in my bank account this morning. I immediately transferred some money to my mom. It’s not enough to pay off that second mortgage, but it’s enough to at least keep them from being foreclosed on. Once I get the rest of the money, things should be fine.

  “I don’t know if there’s enough money in the world to deal with this,” Victoria mutters. “It still stinks.”

  I ignore that because Victoria’s parents aren’t up to their eyeballs in debt, so she can hang on to her ideals. Besides, it’s really not that bad. Once Gideon’s wounds were taken care of, he was almost… soft. A touch vulnerable. The rough edges were still there, but I could see more beyond those. Something intriguing. Enticing. And then there was his body…

  After what happened in the kitchen, I can’t wait to see him completely naked. Which is probably why I’m not saying anything to Victoria. I’m not ready to stop making mistakes with Gideon.

  “Why are you smiling like that?” Victoria’s tone is sharp.

  I wipe the half smile off my mouth and focus on the screen. “Here’s the video.”

  The camera caught the hallway outside Gideon’s bedroom, empty and dark. There’s a slice of light coming from his bedroom door, but not much. It looks like it could be from a table lamp or something.

  “The image quality is amazing,” Victoria says, her gaze glued to the screen.

  “I know. I didn’t even have to replace the cameras, although I did scrub everything off their systems. But the new operating system I put on them seems to be working out.”

  “With this kind of resolution, if you can get a clear shot of their face, you can get them from some database for sure.”

  I nod and suddenly realize I’m hoping the intruder will try again. Which is absolutely not what I should be doing—my job is keep those people out at all costs. Gideon’s mad bravado must be rubbing off on me.

  “I could,” I say. “But let’s see if we can snare their voice right now.”

  In the video, a figure walks down the hallway. The person is slim, dressed all in black, and moving with purpose. Like they know exactly where they’re going.

  I’ve watched the video before. I already know what’s about to happen in it, but this time when I watch, there’s a weight in my chest. It’s heaviest right over my heart.

  The first time, I was looking for any clues about the attacker’s identity, where the cameras were placed, what parts of the hallway were in blind spots. Things relating to my job.

  This time I’m looking for Gideon. He’s about to be hurt, badly. And he hurt himself again last night saving me. He might be surly and secretive, but he’s not afraid to put himself in danger when it’s necessary.

  I glance over at Victoria. She’s done the same for me, only it was her career she put in danger, not her physical safety. She might dislike Gideon—with good reason—but they share some traits.

  And I suppose I feel responsible for them both now. Which is why I’m reacting so strongly to the video this time.

  “They have a plan,” Victoria says half to herself. “They already know what they’re looking for.”

  “They came in through a downstairs window. Bypassed all kinds of valuables down there to come straight upstairs.”

  Victoria looks sideways at me. “So, what were they looking for up there?”

  “I can’t say.” I’ve already told her that, but I knew she wouldn’t let it go.

  “But you know?”

  I pause the video. “He told me what he thinks they were after. If that was it… then yeah, they knew exactly what they were going for.”

  Victoria sighs and I sense another lecture coming. “This guy, Gideon… I looked up more about who he is and who he runs with. These are powerful guys. If this burglar thinks they can tangle with him, they’re serious business themselves.”

  I start the video again. “I know. I’m committed though. I have to see this through.”

  In more ways than one now.

  The thief opens the bedroom door, flooding t
he hallway with light. So far there’s no noise at all, not even their footsteps.

  Then, at the end of the hallway, a tall, broad-shouldered figure appears. Gideon’s entire face is visible, devastating with those cheekbones and that jawline. He looks like he was expecting this. Like he’s not even surprised.

  I remember again how easily he moved through the house in the dark. He’d practiced that. A lot.

  It doesn’t make any sense why he’d expect one of his friends to betray him though. And over a notebook. A simple notebook.

  But it can’t be that simple if they’re both going to such lengths to possess it. What secrets is that notebook hiding?

  “You’ll never reach it.”

  When Gideon tells the intruder that in the video, Victoria flinches. “He knows him.”

  I shake my head. “He doesn’t.”

  She pinches her mouth tight. “That’s not what it sounds like.”

  A prickle runs down the back of my neck. He thinks it could be one of his best friends behind this, so in a way, he does know the burglar. If he’s correct.

  The intruder pauses when Gideon speaks. Their head cocks like they’re considering their next move. It’s amazing how cool and collected they are even when they’ve been caught.

  It’s no ordinary cat burglar, that’s for sure.

  Gideon waits, power humming through his frame. He’s ready to charge.

  The intruder seems to know what Gideon has planned. They step forward, light, graceful, and Gideon rushes for them. Quicker than my eye can follow, they do something to get Gideon turned around so that he’s rushing for the stairs instead of them.

  Gideon catches himself just in time. He teeters on the top step and I hear his sharp inhale. He thinks he’s safe.

  The burglar doesn’t take even a moment to consider. Fluid as water, they snap an elbow into Gideon’s back, shoving him off the top stair and down, down, down.

  As his arms come out to catch himself, one hand shoots back, snags on the burglar’s shirt. When Gideon falls, the intruder goes with him, the two of them disappearing into the darkness of the stairwell together.

  There’s a long, sustained series of clatters and thunks, each more painful-sounding than the last. The grunts I can tell come from Gideon. And occasionally a sort of suppressed scream, higher in pitch, which might be the burglar.

  My heart is pounding when the noises fade. I already know the damage waiting for Gideon at the end of those stairs. Broken ribs, fingers, and all kind of bruises. And only Rustem to patch him up.

  “Holy hell,” Victoria breathes. “They were ready for him.”

  “Almost. He caught them at the very end.”

  “Still.” Victoria is pale and I bet her heart is pounding too. “Did they say anything at all? Anything that we can use?”

  I pull out just the audio file, jump ahead to when they’re smashing down the stairs. I find that faint, odd scream and play it at a higher volume. “That might be them. I’m pretty sure the grunts are only Gideon.”

  Victoria’s mouth twitches. “Really?” she drawls. “You know his grunts that well?”

  I roll my eyes and ignore her, but my ears and cheeks are hot. I feed that tiny snippet of sound into our voice-recognition algo. “It’s a long shot,” I say, “but without their face, it’s all we have.”

  Victoria taps her chin. “We’ve got a little bit more than that. We know whoever it is has trained in some kind of hand-to-hand fighting. Those moves didn’t happen by accident.”

  Professionals are usually hired by someone. Good professionals are hired by someone with money. Gideon’s closest friends, the ones he suspects the most, have tons of money.

  “I don’t think finding this particular person will answer any questions,” I say. “Unless they give up the person who hired them.”

  “Not likely.”

  As if to prove that point, the voice-recognition algo spits back an error message: Not enough features in the audio file for an identification.

  I fall back in the chair. I knew it was a long shot, but I still hoped. “Nuts.”

  “Downstairs cameras?” Victoria suggests.

  I call up the videos from those cameras. There’s one that’s aimed right at the foot of the stairs that should give us the clearest view.

  Five seconds into the saved video, both Gideon and the intruder come crashing out of the stairwell. Gideon immediately jumps up although it’s clear he’s been battered, his breathing harsh and sawing.

  The intruder doesn’t wait or try anything fancy this time. They aim right for the door and sprint for it. Trouble is, they’ve done something to their leg in the fall, and every other step is hitched.

  Still, they’re faster than Gideon, slipping out the door before he can grab them and disappearing into the night.

  “They vanished into the grounds after that,” I say. “No trace on the outside cameras.”

  “He smashed all the cameras and panels but saved these videos.” Victoria’s chewing on this from every aspect.

  “The videos were backed up to a remote server. They weren’t touched when the system went down.”

  “No noises from them on that one.”

  I nibble on my lip. There’s not, which means we’re at a dead end. Again. And then it hits me—they were limping. “The hospital.”

  Victoria raises an eyebrow in question.

  “They’re hurt.” I gesture toward the screen. “So maybe they ended up going to the hospital. If we check intake records from that night…”

  Her skepticism only increases. “First off, we can’t access those. It’s illegal. Secondly, it wasn’t a life-threatening injury. Even high-level thieves don’t have the kind of benefits that include health insurance. No way they’re going to a hospital.”

  “What’s this about a hospital?”

  Victoria and I both spin around at Gideon’s voice from the doorway. Victoria grabs her throat, her eyes wide. I’m less surprised, mostly because I’m used to his mysterious comings and goings. But my heart still picks up its pace.

  “Maybe your attacker went to the hospital,” I say.

  Victoria is looking him up and down, wide-eyed. Gideon raises an eyebrow at her, the beast. He knows exactly why she’s staring at him, so he doesn’t need to do that.

  “So,” I say loudly, “we were thinking of checking the hospitals.”

  “It’s a HIPAA violation if they share info,” he says. “And I already did it.”

  Well, that tells us. “We also ran voice recognition on the video clips. We couldn’t do any facial recognition though. But if they come back and we get better footage—”

  He cuts me off with a sweep of his hand. “You guys aren’t supposed to be tracking them.” Gideon is back to beast mode. “That’s my job. You just keep them out.”

  “He has a point,” Victoria says. “We don’t catch the burglars.”

  Gideon looks surprised, like he never expected Victoria to be on his side.

  “I’m not about to tackle them,” I say, and Gideon’s mouth flattens. “But even an ID would help.”

  There’s a beat of silence. Gideon looks like he wants to argue more even though he knows I’m right. I’m ready to argue more because I am right.

  Victoria offers her hand to him. “Victoria Shepard. We need to talk about your conditions for Tess. Specifically your forcing her to stay here.”

  Gideon’s mouth twitches. “She told me you were protective.”

  “I’m right here.” I wave my hands in front of both of them.

  “Are you here against your will?” Gideon asks me silkily.

  “This is coercion,” Victoria says.

  I want to roll my eyes at both of them, but this is kind of touching. Victoria’s going after him because she cares about me, and Gideon is pushing back because…

  Well, there’s definitely something between us.

  “It’s fine,” I say. “There’s no coercion.” I feel my face flood with heat when Gideon catche
s my eye. “None,” I finish weakly.

  Victoria catches what passes between us. She doesn’t look happy, but she doesn’t say anything.

  “Good,” Gideon says softly. He’s staring right at me. “I need this system.”

  “Yes, because the other one was destroyed,” Victoria says dryly.

  That dissolves the moment. We’ve got a serious job to do here, one that needs some answers from Gideon if we’re going to do it right. He was in confessing mood before—maybe he still is.

  “Why did you smash the panels?” I ask. He didn’t really give a full answer last night.

  “Because when I went into the system, they were riddled with spyware.” He glances at the ceiling. “Sorry, Gulizar, but they were.”

  “I understand,” she says almost glumly.

  “I didn’t bother to check them,” Gideon says, “because I was an idiot and assumed they were secure. The fucker was watching me for who knows how long.”

  “And the upstairs?” I look to the ceiling, not willing to say more in front of Victoria.

  “Clean.”

  Which is why he left it untouched. That brings up the other thing that won’t stop bugging me. “And the cars?”

  His expression closes off so hard I swear I hear a metal door slam shut. “The cars aren’t your concern.”

  Whoa. The cars are personal. Deeply personal.

  “Okay,” I say coolly. “We’ll keep working on this then.”

  Something like guilt or maybe an apology flickers over his face, but then his phone buzzes. “Fuck,” he says when he looks at the screen. “Why does everything fall apart when I’m out of the office?”

  He disappears into his office without a farewell.

  Slowly Victoria’s gaze swings over to me. “I really, really hope you know what you’re doing here,” she says in a low voice.

  I really hope so too.

  Chapter 17

  Victoria has already left for the day while I’m still working on installing software. Outside, night has fallen, a soft, quiet blanket of dark pressing against the windows. It’s so quiet out here in the country, I almost feel like I’m meditating as I wait for the install to finish.