Code Black (Paranormal Crimes Division Book 1)

by Tina Moss

  When the sun had risen that morning, Sera stretched in bed. The soreness in her muscles had done nothing to deter her good mood. She’d patted the pillow next to her thinking up a witty greeting for him. Her hand met empty space and cotton sheets. She called out for him, checked all the bedrooms upstairs, and tried to shrug off his absence as she headed for the shower. The hot water coated her from head to toe, easing the blissful ache in her body. When a knock sounded at the bathroom door, she jumped, banging her elbow against the glass door’s metal bar.

  “Sera, you in there?” His deep baritone voice sent her senses tingling and a renewed heat rushing through her blood.

  “Yes, want to join me?” she said, trying for seductive though it came off more like a squeak.

  He cursed, too low for her to make out the exact word, but the effect was crystal. “It’s better if I stay out here.” He cracked the door open mere inches. His arm alone darted into the bathroom to leave a pile of clothes on the counter. “We need to talk about last night.”

  The statement sent ice into her veins despite the shower’s steamy heat. She’d dried off fast, dressed in the new clothes he’d procured for her amongst the safe house’s supplies, and met him in the hall—the other rooms held memories he apparently wanted to forget. After about ten minutes of his bland speech filled with words like mistake and emotionally unavailable, she no longer worried about setting him on fire. As anger burned her worse than any flame, she’d let him have a piece of her mind, then set about using the best defense mechanism she could muster—ignoring him.

  The long walk back to the makeshift airfield, the hours in the small turbo plane, the switch to the helicopter, and the ride in the chopper had been filled with strained silence. Now, as they rode the elevator down the seventy stories of Vanguard Tower and prepared to ambush her father at his office, she found the rift between them unbearable.

  “So,” she said a minuscule sound after hours of disuse. She cleared her throat, opting for small talk over the emotional turmoil this morning brought. Not that she didn’t have some more choice words for him, but it would have to wait until after she dealt with her father. So, yeah idle chatter it was. “Why’d we land on the biggest skyscraper in Calgary?”

  Talon glanced at her. A flitter of hope flashed across his face before he hid it behind a stoic mask. She bristled. If Mr. Hot and Cold thought he was getting away with his attitude and blowing off their night together that easily, well he had another thing coming. “Later.” She gritted her teeth.

  “What?” he said. His brow furrowed.

  “Nothing.” Her jaw clenched tighter. “Asked about the building.”

  “Oh. It belongs to Arthur Vanguard, CEO and mogul of Vanguard-Hoff Corporation. He’s also the head of PCD Unit Four, which is comprised of Districts Eight through Ten.” He nodded his head toward the lobby’s rich marble and stone fireplace as they exited the building. “Needless to say, his districts have a bit more funding than ours.”

  “Oh.” Sera brushed her hair from her face as the wind whipped down the street.

  He guided her to the passenger side of a black Escalade, pausing with his fingers wrapped around the door handle. His words came out strained. “Sera, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean for this morning—”

  “Talon.” She held up a hand for him to quit talking. “You made it clear how you feel...and how you don’t. Last night was a mistake. There’s nothing more to say. So, let’s not drag this out, okay?” Her chest constricted. Not screaming her pain here and now took all of her willpower, but opening up that can of worms wasn’t in the cards. She needed her strength to face her father. Talon and that baggage had to wait for now.

  His blue eyes darkened to a muddy grayish hue. He nodded once with a locked jaw, and almost ripped the door off its hinges as he held it out for her.

  “Thanks,” she muttered, holding back the eye roll, and hopped inside. The door slammed shut with a grim finality, but Sera ignored it, admiring the truck’s interior instead. The sleek leather and satellite radio reminded her of her sweet baby back in Phoenix. The cops still had her Jeep locked up at the impound lot and refused to release it until the Buckhorn investigation closed. Even more reason for her to solve these damn crimes, as if she didn’t have enough cause with the creeps attempting to kidnap her, kill her, or who-the-hell-knows what they wanted to do with her.

  The engine kicked on with a rush and Talon took off. Her father’s office was about fifteen minutes away. Although from Talon’s driving, he seemed determined to make it there in five. Sera didn’t mind. She reveled in the speed and cracked the window to feel the wind in her hair. When she caught him staring at her, she shrugged and snapped, “What?”

  “You’ve got a thing for going fast?”

  His heated look sent her body temperature soaring, even though she swore not to let him affect her. “Yeah, so? I like horsepower. Got a problem with it?”

  “Not at all.” He pulled his gaze back to the windshield, but his knuckles blanched white on the steering wheel.

  “Good.” She rubbed a hand along the dashboard. “This baby’s nice, but my Jeep 4x4 at home would eat it for breakfast.”

  “Of course she’d have to have a thing for trucks too,” Talon mumbled under his breath, but Sera’s acute hearing picked up his words. She suppressed a smile. Maybe he isn’t quite so aloof about us as he let on. Good. An inner warmth circled her heart at the possibility, which she promptly trampled. No reason to soften on his dumb ass. She scowled at her weakness.

  Best concentrate on seeing dear old dad again, pet. Guy poked his invisible nose in.

  Sera flinched, unprepared for Guy’s invasion. She hadn’t so much as heard a peep from him in a while. Yeah, uh-huh. I’m on it. She assured him, though why she even bothered, she couldn’t say. Are you all right?

  Your concern is touching, pet. He laughed that mocking sound that grated every nerve ending. Keep your eye on the prize and don’t worry about me.

  Not a problem. I won’t waste my energy. She cut off his pestering with a rendition of a Jethro Tull tune. The 1970s classic about a dirty hobo pissed off the leech every time, so she pumped up the bass on her inner radio. A gnawing uneasiness crept over her psyche. “Why does he keep popping in and out?”

  “Who’s popping in and out?” Talon spun around a sharp curve fast enough to send her thoughts spinning along with the truck.

  “Ah nothing.” She shook her head in an effort to clear it and focused on her surroundings.

  Pulling into a metered parking spot in front of a steel gray building, Talon flipped into reverse and angled the truck. “We’re here,” he said. “You ready for this?”

  “Yeah.” She opened the door, quieting the roar in her stomach. “I’m ready.”

  Sera tapped her nails along the receptionist’s desk, noting the bare remains of the red polish with a frown. “Gods, I need a manicure,” she mumbled, picking at the polish and waiting for the woman to get off the phone. “The second this shit is over with I’m treating myself. Hell, maybe I’ll go for a whole spa day.” The prospect brightened her mood for a couple of seconds before the Playboy wannabe receptionist with the down-to-there blouse and up-to-here skirt hung up the phone and opened her mouth again.

  “Ms. Benenati, I’ve told you already, you and your friend will have to be patient.” She held up the office schedule for the tenth time. “The Senator has important meetings lined up all day.”

  “Maybe you didn’t catch me the first ten times I said it, Pamela.” Sera wrinkled her nose at the woman’s bright yellow nametag that clashed horribly with her pink cardigan. “My friend over there is a PCD agent.” She waved a hand at Talon, who stood against the far wall on the phone again. “And we’ve been waiting patiently for over three hours to speak with the Senator. If he can’t give us a few minutes to discuss a friggin’ murder investigation, not to mention the fact he could be in danger, then why the hell should we stick around any longer?”

  “I understand
the importance. But government matters take precedence.” Pamela adjusted her designer glasses and leaned over to reveal a good four-inch valley of cleavage. The haughty look on her face said they wouldn’t be seeing the Senator for another three hours. “Of course, he’ll try to see you as soon as possible.”

  “Precedence? Oh really? Well, how about this,” she scratched her nails along the desk and met the receptionist’s eye, “you tell Senator Marsh his daughter, the one he abandoned eight years ago, is here to know why he’s sold her out to some murdering psychopaths.” She rose to her full height, happy the new knee-high black boots added inches to her frame. Looking down on the stunned receptionist wasn’t the most charitable thing Sera had ever done, but damned if it didn’t give her satisfaction to wipe the smug look right off the woman’s face. “See if that gets us in a little faster.”

  Mahogany eyes widened into large circles as the receptionist’s mouth opened to match the shape. “His daughter?”

  “That’s right. Now run into his office and tell him the news.” Sera cocked her hip to the side, one hand resting on her thigh. She huffed and cast a meaningful glance in the direction of the back office.

  “Ye-Yes. All right.” Pamela’s heels clicked on the floor as she disappeared down the hall.

  “About time.” Sera snapped at Talon to get a move on.

  He gave a hasty goodbye to the caller and trotted over. “We in?”

  “Yeah. The playboy bunny’s informing dear old dad of our presence.” She pointed in the direction the reception went. “Everything okay?”

  “Meg’s dug up another address. Might lead us to the blackmailer.” He stuck the phone in his back pocket. “My team landed a few hours ago, so I put them on it.”

  She raised an eyebrow at him. “We don’t even know for sure if the deadbeat was being blackmailed.” Her gaze wandered to the long hallway.

  “Evidence is pretty solid, Sera. But we’ll know more when we get it from the source.” He grasped her shoulders and started to lead her toward the office. When she resisted, he stopped and loosened his grip. “You okay to do this?”

  “I can handle it.” Her tone brokered no argument, but her lips quivered regardless of her resolve. She pushed Talon’s hands off her. He made to speak, but she held up her palm. “Let’s just get this over with.”

  The receptionist gave them a cool stare when they walked up to the plain wooden door. The sign on the front read Senator Marsh in gold letters. “The Senator will see you now.” She turned the knob and cracked the door, before sashaying back to her post.

  “Thanks a lot,” Sera muttered. She grabbed the doorknob, breathing slowly in and out. It stood an inch open. She pulled it shut. Her heart beat too fast. Panic welled in her throat. She couldn’t do this.

  A hand touched her back. She flinched away. Talon’s eyes widened. “Sera?”

  She glared at him. Anger, frustration, pain didn’t even begin to describe this whirlwind of emotions. If she went in there with Talon, she’d explode on one of the men—her father or Talon. It no longer mattered. “I’m going in there alone.”

  He took a step back. His face slipped into that damnable mask again. “We need this information, Sera.”

  “I know.” Her nostrils practically snorted fire. “You can listen at the door and come when I call. But I’m facing my father by myself.”

  Without another word, she pushed the door wide and stepped into the room. Flicking it behind her, she allowed it to close in Talon’s face. Her anger seethed, a living beast without restraint. The aggressive surge of emotion, the rage, startled her. She fought it down, settling for bitter sarcasm as her weapon. “So, miss me?”

  “Serafina?” Senator Marsh rose from his chair, placing his glasses on the desk. His hand spanned across his striped red and black tie. A well of feeling fanned from his question. Too many to name. He hadn’t called her by her given name since she was a little girl. “Is it really you?”

  Sera’s breath hitched. He looked old, far older than the way she pictured him from memory. His once jet-black hair had faded to a charcoal gray, offset by silver streaks. The dark suit he wore masked his gaunt frame, but the evidence of his weakened strength showed in his sunken cheeks and wrinkled brow. Bags drooped under his eyes as wide as the Okanagan Valley they’d love to hike and camp together when Sera was still a child.

  “Yeah Dad.” She heard herself saying. Her rage replaced by some strangling emotion—one she didn’t want to face. “It’s me.”

  “Oh, thank gods.” He took three steps toward her and had his arms around her before she could think to push him away. “I’m so glad you’re all right. I was so afraid they wouldn’t understand. Wouldn’t protect you. After you didn’t return my calls, I feared the worst.”

  As a wave of uncertainty threatened to choke her, she took a pointed step back from his embrace. “Thanks,” she whispered, unable to keep the bite from her voice. “But I’m fine.”

  He moved away, giving her air, but his soft hazel eyes never left her face.

  Sera’s breathing grew ragged under the scrutiny. Her hands drifted to her neck. Reaching for courage, she heard an echo flitter across her psyche. Buck up, pet. No time to wuss out. She crossed her arms in front of her stomach to ease the queasiness. Coldness steeled her nerves. She didn’t come for a reunion. She came for answers. “I think you know why I’m here.”

  “Yes honey, I know.” His features softened. For a moment, he became the man she remembered, the father who had loved her.

  Her breath stopped. A split second. That was all it took. Suddenly, the case, the murders, the phage, none of it mattered. The question she’d kept bottled up all these years rose to the surface, skimming the edges of her emotions. The wall around her heart crumbled. In a whisper that cut worse than a blunt knife she asked, “Why?”

  “I didn’t want you to be hurt by my political obligations.” He straightened, his face revealing nothing.

  “No,” she said. Her teeth clamped together so she nearly spat. “Not that. Not now. Eight years ago...” Her insides bled, raw. Nerves exposed. Her voice simmered low, not her own. “Why did you abandon me?”

  He stumbled and fell into his desk as if she’d given him a physical blow. Tears gathered in her eyes. She blinked them away. Before he could speak, she sputtered on, “If you really cared about me, you wouldn’t have shipped me off to some boarding school in the middle of nowhere.” The memory from all those years ago played over and over in her mind—the look of disappointment in her father’s eyes, the way he’d silenced her from speaking about the accident, how he forbid her from ever using her powers, and the next day when he told her he was sending her away. Her soul felt afire, but her words cut colder than ice. “You left me. Your own daughter. You abandoned me.” She tasted nothing, her mouth dry. “How could you?”

  “I never abandoned you. I cared about what happened. Why else do you think I’d send you away?” The light in his eyes died, replacing the hazel with a deeper brown. His shoulders sagged. “I had to bury the incident, the files. I used my influence at the police station to destroy the leads back to you. To ensure it looked like an accident. If anyone found out the truth, then they’d learn about you. I couldn’t risk it.”

  “What about me? You don’t even know the truth. You wouldn’t let me say anything. I nearly killed Matt after he...” Her fury fell, stealing her strength. A pit of sorrow replaced it. She touched her stomach and shook her head to banish it. “It doesn’t matter what he did. All that matters is I set that fire. I burned him. I put him in a coma. And you sent me away.” Her heart leapt to her throat. “Maybe I deserved it.”

  He moved toward her again. “Sera, of course not. You didn’t know what you were doing. I know you didn’t mean to hurt that boy.”

  “You don’t know anything!” She shoved him hard. He staggered into the desk. Agony tightened her chest. “I meant to hurt him.” She struggled for breath and wiped the sweat from her forehead. Her voice rose high, but ste
ady. “Do you even know what he did to me?” She pushed at the vision, refusing to give it power. It claimed her anyway. The night of the dance. Matt draping an arm over her shoulder. Rushing her to his car. Saving her from the crowd. Then after... “He was so nice to me. I wanted to make him happy. But it wasn’t right.”

  Her father’s cheeks drew in as if he’d sucked them between his teeth. “Sera, honey, what are you saying?”

  The nightmare continued on, a movie stuck in a loop. “I had to get him off me, so I let go. I used my powers. I burned him.”

  “Did Matt,” a ragged exhalation escaped between his lips, “did he hurt you?”

  Finally, she trapped the memory into its vault and shoved it to the back of her mind. “I don’t know.” She shrugged, refusing to make it harder. “It did hurt. I said no, but he didn’t stop.”

  Her ears picked up Talon’s enraged footsteps from beyond the door. She knew he paced the hall just outside the office. He’d have heard every word with his shifter hearing and waited for her to call him inside. If he’d given even a small sign of his feelings after their night together, maybe she’d take comfort in him. But not now. Not how things were between them. No, she’d have to rely on herself.

  Her father took another step closer, reaching out a hand to her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “You told me not to talk about it, my powers, ever. You told me never to use them.” She wanted to take his outstretched hand, to feel comforted, loved. She crossed her arms instead. “I didn’t know how to tell you about Matt.”

  Viciousness unlike she’d ever heard before seeped from her father’s mouth. “That son of a bitch should be dead, not in a coma.”

  She blinked, shocked by his show of emotion. In all of their brief interactions over the years, he’d been stoic, calm. He hadn’t shown anger in...well, not since the day she left for that boarding school. “It doesn’t matter now. He’s suffered enough because of me.” She paused, unsure if she wanted an answer to her next question. “Why did you send me away?”