by Jade White
Driving through the city, she could see the changes in it as she moved closer to the airport. She drove through her neighborhood, a place of old well-kept homes. Small buildings that dotted the landscape with a few old Mexican restaurants in the area, these places comforted her. She had grown up here, and no matter how much they could pay her, she was never going to leave. The house she owned now was the home her father had died in, followed after a few years by her mother. It was a place of wonderful protection that she relished.
She moved through the streets of El Paso, moving to the other side of the interstate. She could see the large signs giving directions to the airport or Fort Bliss. At the beginning, they directed her to the same part of town, but soon the paths diverged. She followed the directions to the airport, following the signs around roundabouts and through various stop signs. She had to be careful of the lane she was in, getting to this airport was exceptionally confusing and there were a lot of accidents here.
They catered to the military and tourists in this part of town, so it was nicer underneath the ever-present layer of dust. Fast food joints and chain hotels littered the landscape, clawing their way in nicer and nicer shells until she reached the beautiful building that held the airport. It had a roof that looked like it had been pounded from oxidized copper; the green had a slight glitter in the bright sunlight. It was hard to tell if it was actually a copper coated roof or not, but more than likely, it was painted that way, that much copper would get expensive quickly.
Parking in the short-term lot she grabbed the piece of cardboard from the passenger seat. She had made it before she left and it looked like it was too late to get out of this job. In large printed capital letters it had the name Levin written across it. She grumbled as she slammed the door and locked them behind her and stomped toward the sliding doors of the airport.
Chapter2
The building was built like a large T. The two arms that were parallel to the parking lot held the airline check in desks on one side and baggage claim with rental cars on the other. The long hallway that went down from the center of the top of the T led to a couple of restaurants. A large escalator rose from the center of the hallway that led to the TSA ran invasions that people were required to endure before they could fly.
She had a few minutes before his plane was supposed to land originally, and from the site of the board, it was probably going to be delayed for another ten minutes. She wandered down the hallway taking a left turn into a small area of the building that was off of the patio where all of the smokers go to take a few minutes of rest.
There was a loop in the hallway, hosting another one of the gift shops, a small waiting area, a bar and a tiny exhibit of photos from the early days of the airport. She wandered through the photos, living in the introspection of the moment, not really taking any of it in. She couldn’t believe that time was being wasted greeting this guy who could have caught a cab from the airport. Checking her watch she noticed that it was time for him to land. She tucked the cardboard under her arm and hurried down past the large escalators in the middle of the hallway. At the end of the hallway was large waiting area complete with public restrooms and rows and rows of moderately comfortable seating separated by horrible metal armrests.
There was another set of escalators descending from the second floor in this part of the airport. A set of wide stairs sat next to the exit from the terminal. In the back of her brain, she was betting that her guest would be walking down the stairs, after all, a diplomat always wanted to appear strong, at least that is what she had always believed.
Checking the board again she saw that the plane had just landed. Knowing that it wouldn’t be long now, she raised her sign and waited for the man to come down from the terminal. She didn’t look happy, but was willing to get her job done. “Why couldn’t someone else do this?” She asked herself. The truth was no one wanted to do that job. She wondered why, but the rumors were so varied that it was hard to pick out the truth through all of the static.
She was tapping her foot when she saw a man. Something told her that she was looking at the man she had come to pick up. His black hair glittered with a smooth shine. His t-shirt was stretched tightly across his massively toned chest. His skin had a light tan and from his face shone two beautiful bright blue eyes. She almost dropped the cardboard flap that held his last name on it. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him. He sauntered up to her, confidently running his eyes over her body. She didn’t like it and it turned off the awe immediately. She thrust out her hand. “Mr. Levin?”
“Call me Gregor, and you are?” His accent was thick and mid-western, drawn out and slow, but not quite the south Texan that was common in these parts. His voice was nearly a purr and it became even more obvious what kind of creature this man was. He touched her hand, gripping it gently and bringing it to his mouth. His kiss was fluttering against her skin and she could feel her heart skip a beat.
She didn’t pull her hand away from his, but her face contorted into a slight sneer. She tried to hide the emotion, but it was visible to his keen eye. “Dom.” It was a one word answer, unwilling to give up more information.
He released her hand, letting it drop back down to her side. “It’s very nice to meet you, Dom. Now, where can a man get a bite to eat around here?” He pronounced her name with a rumble in his throat. It sounded like a word injected with sex and forbidden desires. Her name became the center of his words.
She chose to ignore his unspoken offer, instead, she crumpled up the cardboard so that she could fit it into the garbage can. “I’m supposed to take you to the safe house, not take you to lunch. I’m sure there will be food there, waiting for you.” She explained, her voice growing harder as she spoke to him. He seemed to be one of those overconfident swaggering men that were full of more self-confidence than ability and common sense. “Let’s get your bags and get you out of here.” She began to lead the way to the baggage claim, walking briskly in her annoyance.
“Is it really that dangerous?” His smile held a dangerous glint. He saw the look on her face and dropped his face to a more serious expression. He pulled his luggage off of the belt, checking the tags. She noticed that they were expensive bags, showing a little age, but still carried a sophisticated air with them.
“I don’t think that you’re going to be in a lot of danger, but there are always the splinter groups that just don’t want to listen to reason.” She explained carefully, her words echoing in the vacuous halls of the airport. “That’s why we need you. As much as I don’t like the idea of calling in outside help, you might be the only one who can stop this from escalating into full fledged war.”
“So you don’t like me?” His eyes started to twinkle again. It was the same look many people get when they are anticipating a challenge.
“I don’t know you, but I respect your abilities.” Her answer was politic but held the ring of truth behind it.
They stepped out of the airport, and he looked around. “It looks a lot different than I thought that it would.”
“What were you expecting, giant cacti and tumbleweeds?”
“Well, honestly, yeah, a little.” He laughed at himself. “This just looks like a city that’s been coated in dust.”
It was her turn to smile. “That’s pretty much it. You were thinking about Arizona, by the way, western Texas and New Mexico aren’t really known for tall cacti with reaching arms. There is a different type of cactus that is predominant here.” She was explaining to him and he could see a small light form in her eyes. The love of this place was something that had been held deep within her, obviously planted as a seed at a very young age. Her dark brown eyes glittered in the desert sun and her brown hair sparkled with her natural blonde highlights. Her skin was a light mocha color, with slightly darker freckles playing across her cheeks. He had to admit that she was beautiful when she smiled. He was silent for a while, just appreciating the sight of her.
They reached the car fairly quickly. She unlocked t
he doors and opened the passenger side door for him. It was silent as she slid behind the wheel. “If you want me to, I can take you through a drive on the way to the safe house.”
“That would be lovely. Where is this safe house?” He asked, seeming to contemplate the situation. “We can get down to business a little quicker that way.”
“Once I drop you off with your handlers, they’ll fill you in on the situation.” She explained eager to drop him off. She was speeding slightly, weaving through the rush hour traffic leaving the airport.
“You don’t like me very much do you?” His question hit on target.
“I don’t even know you.” Her words were terse, filled with a controlled sort of indifference, or at least that’s the emotion that she was trying to portray.
“That doesn’t explain why you’re trying to get us into an accident.” His voice held a hint of laughter in it, as if he was exaggerating to emphasize the erratic manner in which she was driving. “Do you always drive like this?”
Her face softened a bit. She slowed down and stopped weaving through the traffic as much. “Only when I have VIPs in the car.”
In a safer manner, she arrived at the appointed destination. He climbed out of the tiny car, his large frame unfolding out of the seat. He plucked the bag of burgers off of the center console and asked if she wanted to bring her salad in. She shook her head and followed him into the small house in a much better part of town than she lived in. It was a pretty little townhouse with a pretty little flowerbed in the front yard.
She walked to the door and unlocked it with the specialized key that she carried. Once the key had been turned, she touched the door and released a bit of magical energy into it. The house opened up to them and they walked inside.
The first thing that Dom noticed was how empty it was in the building. “Where is everyone?”
Gregor sniffed around. “I don’t think anyone’s here.”
“I don’t get it. Someone was supposed to be here to take you off my hands.”
The large shifter mocked offense. “Take me off your hands?” He put his hand across his chest and gasped in shock. The twinkle in his eye appeared again and she knew that he was laughing at her.
She rolled her eyes, refusing to respond to his teasing. Pulling her phone out of the large purse she carried, she dialed a number. Dispatch didn’t answer her this time; instead she was routed to the division head, Anna. Anna was a powerful woman, but the rumor was that she was something much more than human, she must be something very special to keep her identity so secret.
“Dominique.” Anna’s voice was severe, serious and filled with professionalism.
“Anna.” The response was slightly shocked. “No one’s here.”
“I know. We had a slight situation. A skirmish broke out on the North side of town and we need all hands out there.”
Dom’s attention snapped back to her situation. “Who’s going to deal with emergencies?”
“We’ve got all of the emergencies that we can handle right now; you just stay with the kitty and keep him safe. With the fighting starting again, that cat could become a target very easily.”
She sighed into the phone. “You owe me; this “kitty” is super annoying and keeps trying to climb on the drapes.”
As Anna disconnected the line, Gregor laughed. “That was a wonderful analogy. Should I get your food from the car for you?”
“I’ll get it, you stay inside.” Dom’s order was firmly spoken. She was cursing herself with each step she took. “Don’t answer the door. I know how to let myself in. If someone knocks, they aren’t meant to be here with you.”
Climbing down to the car she opened the door and pulled out the bag and her soda. It didn’t take long for her to reopen the front door in the same manner she had originally used. Her guest had made himself comfortable, lounging on the couch with a burger in his hand. “This isn’t a great burger.” He said the words between bites of the sandwich.
“You seem to be enjoying it well enough.” She taunted him, baiting him with her words.
“What would you like to see me do, spit it out in disgust and curse in Russian?”
“That would make more sense.” She tucked her brown hair behind her ear with a smile facing down. “You are nobility, after all.” She caught her action and stopped it, chastising herself.
He laughed. “I’m not that type of guy. I’ve moved out of the silly games of my ancestors. When my parents moved to America, they left that stuff behind.” He paused for a moment to take another bite. “Tell me about the situation here.”
Dom sighed. “I don’t even know where to start. I’m sure you’ve heard about the trouble with the cartels around the border.”
“I’ve heard a few things on the news, but not much.”
“Well, in this area a lot of people are connected to the cartels, it’s no different for the shifters.” Her story continued. “The tensions in the entire area are affected, neighbors are moving against each other in even the best neighborhoods.”
“The news doesn’t make it seem that bad.”
“It’s more of an underlying tension. Bullets fly over the border and kill people; cartels are taking over so many aspects of our lives.” She opened her salad. “You’ll have to excuse me, I’m a field agent. I don’t typically brief people like this.”
“You’ve thought about this a lot, I can tell.”
“I’m connected to the land here. My mother and grandmother were as well. We’re healers. I responsible for banishing and controlling troublesome spirits.”
“Did your mother do this kind of work as well?” Gregor asked, trying to pull her into a personal conversation.
“No, not that it’s any of your business.” Her manner became guarded again. She didn’t particularly want to talk about this – that much was very obvious.
He raised his hands up once again, abandoning the line of questioning. “Are the local shifter’s associated with different gangs?”
“Not particularly, there are some minor associations. I just believe that the tensions in the humans around are affecting their nature. As you probably know, because you are one, shifters are fairly sensitive to the moods of nearby humans.”
“How very nice of you to point that out. How bad is the fighting?”
“Right now it’s mostly coyote against wolf. They break out into fighting at the edge of their territories, when they used to be able to roam freely through the city, sharing territory, or at least letting the others walk around them. “It’s not major fighting as of yet, but it could explode into a full-fledged war at any point. That’s about all I know about it.”
Gregor nodded and pursed his lips thinking about the situation. He clasped his hands together and placed the elbows on his legs. His index fingers tapped against his upper lip as he gathered up all of the information in his head.
Chapter3
They waited for hours but no one arrived. Dominique called once again, trying to get someone to relieve her. To her great disappointment she was told that she would end up having to spend the night in the house with him. “If you need something from your house, someone can stop by and bring it to you while they’re running around.” She was told.
“I think that I can get whatever I need. Can you send someone over to feed my cat for me? I’m going to order food for tonight.” She hung up when Anna agreed to take care of it for her, frustrated and alarmed at spending the night in such a tiny little house with such a handsome man. “I’ve got some bad news.” She told him while walking back into the living room where he sat on the couch.
“What’s that?” He looked at her, his eyes seeming to bore into her soul. It was the gaze that felines are so good at, in general. Her own cat possessed that same intense look. She almost laughed at the way this man’s stare reminded her so much of the tiny little kitten she had saved from a freezing death in the streets. He caught her subtle display of humor. “What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,
the bad news is that it doesn’t look like they can get anyone else here from the shifter division until at least tomorrow. It looks like we’re roommates for the night. I don’t know how long it’s going to take to get the shifters to want to start talking again. Until then, we have an obligation to keep you safe.”
“Should I talk to them now?” He questioned her, his voice serious and concerned. “I might be able to get them around the table.”
“They aren’t talking to anyone yet. It’s mostly fighting and growling across borders right now. From what I heard, which isn’t much, they had a big blowout yesterday that most of us had to go deal with.”
“Do you have any idea what happened?”
“Not really, I was busy picking you up.” She sounded disappointed, almost as if she wanted to be out there on the front line.
“I think that I should see the city in the morning. I need to see what exactly I’m dealing with.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Intoning the danger of that idea, she made her feelings on the matter very clear.
“Whether it’s a good idea or not, it has to be done.” Gregor’s accent hardened with determination. She could almost see his eyes flash into blue cat’s eyes. It frightened her a little and she chose not to argue her point further. They spent the afternoon watching various shows on the television, not really paying attention to any of them. The pair continued to steal glances at each other during the show, never quite meeting each other’s eyes.
