The Siren (The Chloe Chronicals Book 2)

by Eden Rose

"Let's go to the Latin club and dance!"

  *

  I am happy that my director let me take the rest of the day off in order to finish my paperwork. Now it is Friday which means I have to go back to work.

  Something told me to look cute today so I searched through all of my clothes and put on a form fitting grey suit. I left my hair down today and put on a touch of makeup to set my cheek bones off. After slipping into some green slingbacks I am ready.

  Driving to work is easy since I lived about two miles away. Normally I would walk but these heels are not too friendly. Plus, I'm rather clumsy and have already fought a bout of broken neck syndrome twice so far.

  As I walked through the building, I am amazed to see so many people here. There were people everywhere and I suddenly got nervous. I rode the elevator to my floor and jumped off of it when it is my time to.

  I suppose I should start watching where I'm going, because I ran smack into someone with a muscular chest. "Um, I'm sorry," I mumbled and tried to back out of the hold. When a hand touched my lower back, I am curious as to who I ran into.

  "No need to be sorry. You can bump into me any time," Grant said in my ear and rubbed my back for a second. "Are you surprised?"

  Backing out of the hold made me run into the wall. This is not my day. "What are you doing here?" I thought I had a few days to consider what I am going to do about everything. There is no way I am going to be able to get into anything personal with him while people were watching us. I flicked off Colin as he gave me the stink eye.

  "Delacruz! Meeting, now!" The director calls out to me and I gathered my composure back and walked away from the wall.

  All of us followed behind the director and I shuffled my feet. These heels are already hugging me and I wish I had brought another pair of shoes to change into.

  "Good morning! This is an exciting day. I have been waiting for Delacruz to come back from Fort Collins and I would like to introduce our new agent, Grant Brandon."

  All of the agents that work in the building were seated around in a room reserved for business. William sat off to my right and to my surprise, Colin sat to my left. This is awkward. I haven't spoke to Colin since two nights ago. Grant sat next to William and I waited for the director to continue. I'm hoping that my nerves aren't rolling off of me like I think they are...

  "We are lucky to have Brandon here and this week we are launching a new task force. Stalking has gotten out of control in Denver. Last week, there were three women who had reported that they are being stalked and six people this month have died because of their stalker. This task force is going to examine and criminally profile all of these stalkers to get a better idea on why these people are targeting certain ones. Due to the fact that we already have an agent who has had an affiliation with a stalker, she will be the one to lead."

  Shit. I wish he would stop bringing that up. It isn't my fault that this person became fixated on me as I tried to solve his daughter's kidnapping when I first moved here. The man followed me around for six months and took pictures of me everywhere I went.

  Everyone started to look around and then I felt the eyes on me. It's the reason why I don't talk to too many people. I hate the pity of it. "Delacruz, I would like you to lead this task force. Temporarily, you will be off of internal affairs. You will be working with Bradford and Brandon for this," the director looked at the two guys and he must have felt my unease. The captain threw a bigger folder on the table. "Things have escalated and the stalking has now led to a sex tracking ring. I want this fixed and some bastards locked behind bars.You will need to listen to Delacruz. This is her task force and she is to be involved in everything." The director turned around and picked up a box. "All of the files that you will need are in here. Get to work."

  Everyone besides Colin, William, Grant and myself left. I sat there in awe. My own task force? This is insane and very exciting. This is a fantastic opportunity for me to spread my wings and get into a director role!

  I felt Grant staring me down as I got up to go to the box. Be brave! You can do it.

  "Okay, everyone this is going to be interesting. We will be spending a lot of time together. Let's break and then meet after lunch to discuss strategy," as I went through the box.

  "Special Agent... Oh, I'm sorry. Chloe, did you want anything?" William asked me as I sat down in front of the nod and avoid Grant.

  "Yes, Mexican food sounds really good. Chicken fajitas please," I hand him my card and he turn to Grant. That shit is my comfort food. I love how spicy it is and everything. My favorite is fried ice cream too but I've had to cut back. Unfortunately, my body isn't withholding the same metabolism before... The joys of adulthood.

  "Did you want anything?"

  Grant stood up and took out his wallet and hand a gold card to William. "The same thing she is having," he took my card out of his hand and threw it on the table. "Get yourself something to eat too."

  William turns around after repeating what we want and walks out of the room. I have some mixed feelings about him leaving. Tension is so thick between myself and Grant to the point of needing a buffer. If my assistant weren't here then we wouldn't have to talk about everything.

  "Chloe," Grant sat in front of me with the box between us. "Are you okay?" One by one, he starts pulling out the contents of the box. Soon the whole table will be filled with folders and random sheets of papers.

  How to answer that question? Let's see... We slept together two nights ago and now I'm a leader on this team. Should I tell him that I crave for him to lay me down and touch me everywhere? Should I mention that I haven't stopped thinking of him?

  I can't do it. Being weak isn't an option for me and it's not something I'm willing to be. Since becoming an agent, I've had to put everything aside; which means I didn't have much of a personal life. Becoming a leader on a group is my ticket in. I need this.

  Do I contradict myself? Every damn day. With that being said... I can't imagine what my life would be like without Grant again. I missed him so much and I didn't even realize the magnanimous of it that has crashed down on me these past few days.

  No! This is my task force and I need to be in control over everything. If I told Grant then he would consider me weak. I'm not fallible. I'm in control. So I will lie and deny.

  "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I pull out some files and start to go through them.

  "You know that you don't have to act as if we don't know each other," he whispers and then I turn to look at him. This man is a masterpiece of perfection. Those full lips and high cheekbones... It's not fair for one person to be this unblemished. To top it all off, he's a very good man. "What happened with you being stalked?"

  How am I supposed to answer that question? I want to answer it truthfully, but I am worried that he would make a bigger deal out of it then it needs to be. So I decide to ask the question I have been wanting an answer to. "What are you doing with me? Just give it to me straight." I have been wanting to know what the answer is and where our relationship stood.

  I'm on the fence of whether or not I want him to say pretty words of our couple status. What could he say really? We are strangers who just happened to have a lot of memories with each other. Great memories... but all in all, we are still strangers. With that being said, he's a stranger to me that I want nothing more than him. He is what I want and I know he wants to do the whole couple thing. Grant is worth me stepping out of my severely comfort zone and step in a world unclear.

  I kept my focus on the boxes and files as he scan his mind. "Chloe, I want to be with you. I have wanted to be with you for years. However, I know that you don't do relationships so I'm not going to ask you to be in one."

  That isn't the explanation I wanted. Granted I didn't know what answer I am wanting. "Ask me," I whispered. I hope he asks me the right question because working together is going to be difficult if we didn't establish an understanding.

  Grant places his hand on my knee and rubbed. "Give me a chance," he squeezes my knee and I
laughed.

  "Sounds good to me. When did you want to start owning up on your chance?" I am baiting him and I could hear his wicked smile through his hand that he places over his mouth.

  "Now, precious," he rubs his hand up my leg and stops at my zipper. Tease. "What do you say?"

  "Fine. Now get off of me. I have work to focus on," I pick Grant's hand off of my leg and placed it on the table. Hey, he doesn't get the whole chocolate bar, he gets a little brick of it.

  He laughs and got close to my ear as he stood up. "You just wait. You are mine as soon as we leave here," he walks to the other side of the table and I took a deep breath.

  Focus.

  William came in with our food and I didn't realize how hungry I had been. Colin came back shortly after I ate my first fajita. The latent hostility is palpable in the air and I could almost choke on it. This is going to be long work days if this is just an example of who it will go.

  "Delacruz, you know that by you having your task force... this make you a bad ass," Colin informs me as he tries to pick up one of my tortillas.

  I went to bite his hand and he backs off. "Don't touch my food. I will put you on toilet duties!"

  Grant is eating in silence but chuckles when I tried to bite Colin's hand.

  "Special Agent... Chloe-"

  "Seriously, I'm about to put you on toilet duty!"

  "What is the director talking about when he said you were stalked?"

  I drop my head and made another fajita and act as if I didn't hear him. "Its nothing. Don't worry about it," Colin answered.

  I always forgot that Colin is with me that night when I caught my stalker. Out of the blue Colin asked me to go to dinner and then on the way home, there is written threats all over my door.

  "What kind of questions does everyone have? You all are familiar with what signifies a stalker, right?" Nobody answered me so I stood up and pulled a file I am looking at. "Stalking is harassment or intimidation that is unwanted. Unfortunately, there are a ton of grey areas when it comes to stalking. Only when it skirts the line of harassment is it considered illegal."

  I look at three of their faces and seen confusion. Shit. I really don't want to have to tell them what happened. It's bad enough that is one of the reasons why I have to see the ther-rapist. "You guys want to know, don't you?" They nod their head and I sat back down. After slipping off my shoes, I adjusted myself so I sat on my feet. "Fine. A few years ago I am working on a kidnapping case. It should have been open and shut since there is a ransom note that held a variation of trace evidence. The father, Al Thompson, would call me constantly to ask if I found any information out that I could tell him. First it became the phone calls and emails. I didn't think that I had to worry about it since he's a grieving father. However, on the second month he would show up at some of the same places that I am at. He got a gym membership at my gym, followed me around grocery stores and would follow me home." I took a breath and a drink of my water. The three faces looked pained, especially Grant. "I quit going to my gym and I changed my routine so I wouldn't fall into the routine activity theory. Instead of walking straight to work, my roommate and I would walk my dog a certain way and then she and I would change our routes. One night, I woke up to hearing my dog bark obsessively at the window. I didn't know what to expect, so I grabbed my gun from my bedside table and looked out the window. No one is there at first, but I looked off to the side and seen camera flashes that blinded me. Before I knew it, my window is broken and Al slipped in a scrapbook worth of photos of me. These photos were of me at work, during my investigations, on dates, with my friends, at the gym and the grocery store."

  I didn't want to continue and I felt Grant's eyes burn into me. I looked up and locked eyes with him. He mouthed: "You can do it, precious."

  Here's the part of the story that I don't want to tell people. How big of a slut I am and how I used Colin as a piece of dick. I could just imagine how Grant would feel if he knew I slept with him. However we haven't talked in years could he really be mad at something at has nothing to do with him?

  "Colin had asked me to go to dinner on the night that I caught him. On the way back, I noticed that my screen door is pushed out and there were more pictures that made a collage on the floor. Al had been following me for six months. Everywhere I went, there is a picture of me. The night that I caught him is scary. Colin got called to go back to work, and I searched my place to make sure that my roommate isn't there and my dog is okay. Luckily, I found a note from her that said she went for a walk with my dog. I cleaned up everything the best I could, until I heard someone kick open the door. At first it reminded of SWAT and how they did it, but when someone tackled me to the floor, I knew it wasn't them. Al broke into my place again and took automatic timed photos of him hitting me and trying to undress me. I got him off of me before he had the chance to stab me. Everything in my body wanted to kill him, I called the police department and let them know what happened. I was taken off the case and it went cold after it was reassigned."

  "Wow."

  Grant

  I had a lot of feelings while listening to Chloe discuss what happened to her. One, I hated this Colin kid. The nerve of him just leaving her after her home is broken into is steel. Another feeling is of protectiveness.

  "Chloe, may I speak to you in private?" Colin asked her but she shook her head.

  Does this kid not know that I want to remove his balls and feed it to him? Who the fuck does he think he is by talking to her like that? He should be asking me if he could talk to her in private.

  God damn it. I need to calm down before I whip out my dick and stick it in her mouth.

  "We need to concentrate on finding some characteristics and the profiling of these stalkers before we leave here today. I don't know about you, but I sure as fuck don't want to stay here all night." The other two guys were looking down at a file and I winked at her. She blew me a kiss.

  I took out my phone to send her a quick message.

  Me: You are making me want to take you right here... right now.

  About a moment later, she pulled out her phone and let out a laugh.

  Chloe: What are you waiting for?

  Was her message back to me. I will get her back. She can count on it. I'm going to make her beg for it before I let her come and she will be writhing on the bed by the time I let her release.

  "What are you doing this weekend?" Colin asked her and William laughed. This is going to be fun. "I am wondering if you wanted to go to the bar or something. My friend hasn't stopped talking about your friend. Maybe we can meet up."

  Chloe looks up at me and her eyes said everything. "Don't forget you and Christine promised to help me move into my new apartment! I can move in tomorrow." Technically not true. I haven't even found a place to stay and I am I hoping Chloe had a place for me between her thighs.

  "Oh!" She slapped her forehead and let out a breath. "That is tomorrow, isn't it?"

  "Yep, and Christine said that she will help too. Sorry, Bradford," I let out a chuckle and pulled up my file I am holding to hide my smile. She is mine, Bradford. Mine!

  There is a knock in the door and a little woman came into the room. She could have been fifty or something, but the glasses she wore blocked half of her face.

  "Special Agent Delacruz! You are late," the woman growled and tapped her foot looking at Chloe.

  "Sorry everyone. It's my couch time. Come on, Mabel. Let's get this done," she gathered her phone and then walked to the door. "While I'm gone, please compile a list of victims by their age, height, occupation and location. We will continue when I'm back."

  I watched her leave. Couch time? I knew what that meant. Why would she be seeing a therapist? This gets crazier and crazier.

  I pulled out a picture of a victim and set it on the table. This female didn't have anything too special about her, but I do recognize a natural redhead when I see one. The next folder held another natural redhead. Both victims were mid-twenties and lived in a five mile
radius. This couldn't be just a coincidence. The rapist must have a qualm for redheads and this area.

  "So," I am snapped out of my head and looked up to see Bradford staring at me. "Why did you transfer?" He had a nervous twinge in his voice.

  "I was recruited and I have lived in Denver before. It is a nice city. Why? You don't want me here?" I am baiting him. No doubt about it that he has a thing for Chloe.

  "Not really, no. I don't understand your and Chloe's relationship. How do you two know each other?"

  William sat back in his chair and had a smile on his face. He is surely enjoying watching Bradford and I dueling. Maybe he would enjoy me punching this dumb ass kid in the mouth. He's starting to wear on my damn nerves.

  How to answer this question? Should I tell him that I know what it feels like to sink in her and what it feels like to have her moan my name? Probably not. Tempting though. "We had been friends in middle school through college. She and I lived together throughout college." I needed to speak to Chloe. She needed to be aware of my true feelings for her from the beginning and know that I didn't want to keep this casual. How could I? I have thought of nothing but her for four years. She is similar to a drug. A drug that I would never want to come off of.