The Rise of House Valdis

by Naomi Valkyrie

  My eyes shift back to Xenobia. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. Her skin is dark blue, and she has layers of blue-black hair falling well past her shoulders. What. The. Fuck. I’m rapidly brought back to my senses when I hear her yell at the men. She is just standing there, not moving, but I watch as the two men drop Mercy and struggle with their weapons.

  Pointing them at each other, it is over quickly. Everything freezes, like time has stopped. My perspective shifts and I am in front of Xenobia now. I see the bodies in the same position we found them in. I see Mercy on the ground, hurt, unconscious. As I look up, I see Xenobia’s eyes and they are black as night. Our eyes widen when we both realize that we’re aware of each other in the dream.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Xenobia

  I’m sitting up before I even realize that I am awake. What the hell was that? At first, I thought I was just having a nightmare, but then I saw him. I know he saw me. I felt him look right at me, into me. How much did he see? What if he saw my true appearance? Even as I’m questioning everything, I know in the back of my mind he can’t prove anything. If he said anything to anyone about this, they would think he was nuts.

  It seems like weird is piling up, and with it a lot of questions. I’m at a loss for answers. I still haven’t figured out why Javier made contact after all this time. This whole mess started because of him. I know I will have to deal with him sooner or later too. Things are just so much more complicated now since I am on Matt Winters’ radar.

  My phone vibrates and I reach over to the nightstand to pick it up. Speak of the devil. Apparently he’s on his way back to my office. This can’t be good. I send a text to Maggie asking her to come up and keep an eye on Mercy. I don’t want to leave her alone. She’s going to have a lot of questions when she wakes up, and she deserves some answers.

  ***

  I’m headed down the elevator to my office when my phone vibrates again. He’s in my office waiting. I’m in no hurry to see him again, beautiful or not, so I’m purposefully taking my time to get there. Passive-aggressive? Maybe. That and I need time to steady myself. I need a clear head and grounded energy to deal with this conversation. Pausing just outside the office door, I take a breath. “I know you are there, Valdis, I can smell you.” He can smell me. Well, that’s attractive. Seriously! Who says that? Jackass. Okay, showtime. I open the door and walk to my desk. He’s sitting on the couch, looking comfortable, like he owns the place. Damn him, his smugness, and his good looks. I put on my best business smile. “What can I help you with, Detective?”

  “Oh come now.”

  Interesting choice of phrase. Mind in the gutter much? Stop it, Xenobia. Focus! “Pretend I don’t know and enlighten me.” We stare at each other for a minute. I push some of my power into him and read him again. I’m digging a little deeper than I did the first time. That is how I know he’s hiding something too. Interesting. If I could figure out what that is, I might get the upper hand in this little predicament.

  “What are you?” he asks, getting straight to it.

  “A businesswoman.” I know I am being an ass, but I can’t help myself. He wasn’t specific so…

  If he’s going to be nosing around, I might as well have a little fun.

  “Cut the crap, Valdis. I saw you, the real you. So I’ll ask again, what are you?”

  “I don’t know what you think you saw, but let’s say you did see something, hypothetically of course. Who is going to believe you?”

  His blue eyes darken as he responds. “Don’t fall into a false sense of security, there are plenty of people who will believe me.”

  Well, shit. He’s serious, and he’s telling the truth. I can feel it. We stare at each other again, but he breaks the silence first. “Look, I know you didn’t kill Smith, and I know that you know where Mercy is, so don’t try to insult me by pretending you don’t know anything.”

  I don’t feel any malice coming from him, but I also have to consider that whatever I say doesn’t just affect me, it affects everybody in my house. “Ok, I won’t pretend I don’t know anything, but you have to understand that I have people to protect. These girls look to me to keep them safe and keep things in order. I’ve already taken some significant risks in the past two days, which ended up with you sitting in my office. This situation could jeopardize the safety of everyone here. If given the choice, I would do it all again because it was the right thing to do, but now I’ve got to do damage control. Anything I tell you could make things worse.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  Matt

  There is so much more going on here than just the case I’m working on. Xenobia’s concern for the girls is real. I know she’s worried about how things will play out for them. This is about more than just the case for me too now, my personal curiosity is piqued and I’m intrigued by this woman.

  But, is she a woman? She appears to be, even in the form of her I saw in the dream. What is she? I’ve got to get her to trust me enough to tell me. Maybe if I tell her what I really am, she will see that I’m not a threat to her. We’re forbidden to reveal ourselves to humans, but she isn’t technically human-at least I don’t think she is-so I think I can slide by on a technicality if anyone finds out. Well, here goes nothing.

  “I’m a shifter, wolf to be exact.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  Xenobia

  If I had been drinking, I might have spewed the liquid everywhere. Instead, I just sat down in my chair, hard. Not only was that an abrupt change of topic, but the new subject matter was completely unexpected.

  “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

  “You heard me. I’m a shifter. That’s how I could smell you outside of the door.”

  Is he serious? Wait, this has to be a joke. He’s trying to throw me off so I lose focus. “Nice try with the fairy tales there, Winters, you almost had me.”

  He sighs loudly. “Well, I didn’t want to do it this way, but it is the only way you’ll believe me.” One minute I am looking at Detective Matthew Winters, the next I am staring at a snow-white wolf with crystal blue eyes. What. The. Fuck.

  “I…um…I…” Really eloquent there, Xenobia. Brain, make my mouth function, would ya! Why is this so surprising to me? I’m not even from Earth so I, of all people, should not be shocked.

  The wolf makes a sound somewhere between a bark and a cough. “You better not be laughing at me you jerk!” There’s that sound again. Yep, he’s definitely laughing at me. Jackass. It suddenly occurs to me that I didn’t lock the office door. If any of the girls saw this, they would freak out. I get up and lock the door. I can feel the wolf watching me, but when I turn around, Matthew is standing there, naked.

  I quickly move my eyes away and gesture toward the couch. “Grab the blanket and put it around you, please.” Peachy. Now I have a naked man in my office and the door is locked. Hopefully no one comes to the door. I don’t want to have to explain this. It’s going to be difficult enough to finish this conversation with him naked. Yes, our business is entertaining men, but this is so out of character for me. Everyone knows this isn’t how I work. Other than interviews, I don’t entertain men in my office. And, this part no one else knows, but my personal clients don’t take their clothes off, they don’t need to. I use my powers to give them the experience they are looking for. They leave satisfied, and they barely have to touch me.

  Matthew is back to sitting on the couch, blanket wrapped around his waist. I want to slap that smirk off of his face, but before I can even coordinate the movement he is speaking.

  “I showed you mine, now show me yours.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Matt

  I should have planned for this a little better, but I had hoped she wouldn’t be this stubborn. This spur of the moment decision has left me sitting on her office couch with only a blanket between my body and her eyes. Totally worth it though to see this outwardly put-together woman lose all coherent thought for a few minutes. Right now she looks fit to kill, but I think she’ll te
ll me what I want to know. Or, even better, show me.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Xenobia

  It is finally starting to sink in. I’m a bit overwhelmed. All of this time I had just assumed I was an anomaly on Earth. I’m now faced with evidence that there actually are things other than humans here. How did I not know this before now? I have so many questions. Of course, just what I need, more questions. I close my eyes and massage my temples. All of this is starting to give me a headache.

  “Well, what’s it going to be? Please tell me that I didn’t just lose my clothes for nothing.” He looks at me expectantly.

  “Ok. Ok. But you cannot tell anyone! Got it. No one! Only one other person knows, and she is sworn to secrecy as well. If I show you, and anyone comes after me, I’ll know exactly who to go after, and it won’t end well…for you.”

  “Did you just threaten me?”

  “Not a threat, just a fact. It wouldn’t be good if anyone brings trouble to me or the girls.”

  “I could say the same to you. You can’t tell anyone about me either.”

  “As long as we understand each other.” I don’t want to tap in to my shadow side, but I will if I feel backed into a corner that threatens me or the people I’m sheltering.

  I drop my glamour. It feels good to just be in my own skin, no energy expended to pretend to be something other. And my clothing stays on when I use my power, so score one for me! Matthew stands up and walks toward me. Thankfully he remembers to keep the blanket wrapped around him. I can sense his amazement and fascination. “Wow!” He seems to be nearly as speechless as I was when he shifted. I don’t feel so bad now.

  As he nears me, he reaches out his hand to touch my arm, but then hesitates. “Is it ok if I touch your arm?” I have to give him credit for asking and not just assuming he has the right to touch me whenever, and wherever, he wants. He might come across as a jackass, but at least he is respectful about this.

  I nod to let him know it’s ok. I don’t let a lot of people touch me, but I know I can trust him. He rests his hand lightly on my arm. I have to make an effort not to flinch. I like the feel of his hand on my arm, warm and gentle. I have to remind myself that not all men want to hurt me. This is something I’ve learned by watching people here on Earth. Still, there are times my memories try to take over and it is a struggle to keep them from driving my actions.

  He must sense my discomfort because he doesn’t linger any further. He backs up a few steps to give me some space. “What are you?”

  This time I’m not going to play games with him. He’s trying to build trust with me, so I can at least make an effort. “I’m a Shadowdancer. As far as I know, I’m the only one of my kind. Generally speaking I suppose I would be what humans call alien because I’m not from Earth.”

  Matthew sits back down on the couch. I can tell that he is processing everything. He’s probably got a million questions too. We sit in silence for a bit, not sure where to go from here. The world has changed for both of us and it is going to take some getting used to. It is so quiet you could hear a pin drop, so of course we both jump when there is a knock on the door.

  What now?

  ***

  I open the door a crack to try to keep Matthew hidden, but Sylvia pokes her head in. “I knew you would want to know…” Her voice fades out as she realizes there is a naked man in my office. Awkward. I should have just yelled through the door. Too late now.

  “You were saying?” I ask, trying to refocus her and downplay the situation.

  “Uh, oh, Mercy is awake.” She’s still eying Matthew while speaking.

  I’m flooded with a wave of conflicting emotions. I’m happy and relieved that she survived the whole ordeal and that the healing worked. But I’m also hesitant, and a bit afraid. Where does this leave things with Matthew? We had a few moments of connection over the fact that we are both different, not exactly human, but he’s still a detective.

  I can’t let him take her out of here. There is no way to know if there will be any side effects from the healing I did. If something happened and I wasn’t with her, she might be in danger or put someone else in danger. I have to convince him to let me keep her here.

  “Sylvia, go down to the wardrobe room and see if you can find some clothes for the detective.”

  After she closes the door, I turn to Matthew. “I can’t let you take her out of here.” Best to just face this head-on.

  “Who said I was going to? I can ask her questions here just as well as anywhere else.”

  That was easier than I expected. Maybe I am just on edge because of all of the unknowns in this situation. I feel like I don’t have control of anything anymore. It is quite disconcerting.

  “Ok, then. Just so we’re clear on the matter.”

  ***

  Sylvia returns a few minutes later with a stack of clothes. She’s still eying Matthew curiously as she hands him the clothes, but then she turns and walks out. Matthew raises an eyebrow at me.

  “Don’t mind her curiosity, this is the first time any of them have seen a naked man in my office.”

  “Seriously. But your business…” he trails off.

  “So, because we entertain men for a living that means that we keep naked ones all over the place?” I am beginning to open up to Matthew, I really hope he isn’t one of those people that makes assumptions about our kind of business. I’d hate to have to kick his ass.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Matt

  I feel Xenobia’s walls go up instantly. What the hell is wrong with me! We had finally broken the ice and now I let my big mouth open before my brain kicked in.

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “Clearly you weren’t,” she says. If the narrowed eyes are any indication, I’d say she’s trying to keep her irritation in check.

  “In my line of work, I’ve seen a lot of whor…uh…women in your profession in their natural environment so-to-speak. After a while, it all starts to run together. I’m sorry if I seem jaded.”

  I watch her face trying to get a read on her reaction. I don’t think I’ve ever stumbled over my words this badly before in my life. I don’t want to say anything that will make this situation worse. Unfortunately I may have already. I need her to trust me, partly because of the case, but also because I find myself intrigued by Xenobia and I want to get to know her, the real her. I feel drawn to her, and even if I don’t want to be. It matters what she thinks of me.

  “We don’t have time for this. I need to see Mercy,” she states. Damn it. She isn’t going to make this easy. I guess I can’t blame her. She just shared a major secret with me and I basically demeaned her and the girls.

  “When you’re dressed, Sylvia will show you the way up.” She brushes past me on her way out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

  Fuck!

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Xenobia

  Judgmental bastard! I exhale as the door slams shut. Why do I let shit like this get to me? People are going to think what they want to think, I should know that by now.

  As I pass Sylvia on my way to the elevator, I ask her to show Matthew upstairs when he’s dressed. I can tell she is curious about the whole situation, but thankfully she just agrees and keeps going. When I reach the door to my room, I hesitate. This is going to be a tough conversation. Deep breath. Ok, I can do this. Opening the door I can see that Maggie has pulled a chair up beside the bed and she’s holding Mercy’s hand. Their conversation stops as soon as they see me.

  “Mercy, this is Xenobia,” Maggie introduces me with a smile, “she is the reason this safe haven exists.” Maggie pats Mercy on the hand and stands up. “Xenobia will answer all of your questions and take good care of you.”

  “Thank you, Maggie,” Mercy says quietly. I can tell she is scared, but she’s putting on a brave face.

  “Good luck,” Maggie whispers to me as she hugs me briefly. As soon as Maggie is gone, I look at Mercy. I’m grateful that she seems to
be keeping herself together. I’m not sure how I would handle it if she was hysterical.

  “I know you have questions, and I will do my best to answer them, but first I want to know how you are feeling and what you remember.”

  “I’m feeling ok. A bit tired and out of sorts. How long have I been here?”

  “Just a day. I figured you would be out much longer, but you are healing much faster than I anticipated.”

  Mercy nods as she processes the information. “I don’t remember how I got here. Actually, I don’t remember much at all. I have these flashes of what I think are memories, but it is all jumbled up in my head.”

  “It may become clearer over time.” A part of me hopes that she never remembers what she’s been through. Unfortunately, since she doesn’t remember, that means I am going to have to tell her about her father being killed. There isn’t any way I can keep it from her, and I would rather be the one to tell her. Matthew will be up at any time, and I don’t want her to hear it from him.

  “Mercy, a detective will be coming up shortly and there is something I need to tell you before he arrives.” I take a deep breath. “This is going to be difficult for you to hear, but your father…your father has been killed.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Mercy

  I’m stunned. I don’t even know how to feel right now. I wake up in a strange place, my memory is all jumbled up, and now I find out my father is dead. It seems like I should be crying or something, but I think I’m in shock. I ask the only thing that comes into my head at the moment. “How did it happen?”