“So, our mission is to provide the highest quality public service and safety in order to preserve, protect, and defend the rights of the citizens and visitors of Sweetwater. We’re no longer the tiny office we once were. Milly here runs reception and general admin. We have our own corrections division.”
“I saw that when I arrived.”
Sheriff Carter nodded. “Oh yeah. Our field division is twenty-three strong and then there’s the records department. Sweetwater even has a small lab now. We no longer have to send all of our evidence away to be processed.”
“That’s great! How long have you been in this building?”
“Only three weeks.” He beamed with pride. “We were bursting at the seams in the old building. Wasn’t even a real office block. We were in a converted house. For a while there, I even had to use one of those agencies to help me find staff.”
“So Sweetwater is the place to be then.” Natasha smiled.
“Seems that way. I was just on my way out, but before I go I’ll introduce you to a couple of my deputies.”
“That’s Emmet,” Milly spoke under her breath. She pointed to the janitor. He was busy emptying wastepaper baskets on the other side of the room. “Don’t mind him, he’s a bit dim and …”
“Don’t say it like that.” Big Bear Bill frowned. “He’s intellectually challenged.”
Milly shooed at the sheriff. “Pidge podge … he’s like a child in many ways. He works a mix of day shifts and night shifts. He’s a sweet enough kid, just don’t get too complicated when …”
“That’s enough, Milly.” Big Bill didn’t look too happy. “I’m going to introduce you to—” He glanced over his shoulder at the deputies going about their business.
“Special Agent Walters.” Deep, raw and intimidating. His voice was enough to send shivers racing up and down her spine. She hadn’t exaggerated that incredible voice in her mind. So deep, so primal. It was naturally husky. “I need you.” Not as menacing as she remembered but just as smoky and rich.
He needed her.
Needed.
Her.
His hand clasped the edge of the door. She could make out his silhouette. “Now, please.” Another shiver. Natasha was sure she had goosebumps. Thank god she’d decided to wear a suit, complete with jacket. He wouldn’t be able to see the flesh on her arms. Pull yourself together, Walters.
“Excuse me.” She looked at the sheriff and then Milly in turn.
“Of course, duty calls.” Big Bear Bill winked at her.
Natasha gave a nod and headed for Titan’s office. Her hands shook.
Natasha had to remind herself that Titan didn’t want to be partnering with her. He had most likely been talked into this. Besides, he might be hot but he was off-limits and probably an asshole to boot.
Natasha held her breath as she walked into the office. Titan was leaning over a desk and keying something into a laptop. Damn! He still wore those tight leather pants and a leather cut-off vest of sorts. His arms were bare. No freaking fair! His biceps were wicked built. The guys back at the Bureau would shit themselves to have muscles like that.
His hair was tied back with a leather tie. It was barbaric. He glanced her way, a deep frown on his forehead.
“Morning … I mean … afternoon,” she blustered.
Titan gave a nod. He touched a stack of files on his desk. “You need to read through these.”
Straight to business. Good! Great! “Okay.” She licked her lips.
“They’re detailed reports of each and every attack, each act of vandalism in the last eighteen months.”
Natasha glanced at the stack of files and then looked back at Titan. She frowned. “I already read through all of the reports. I’ve done my research on this case.”
He shook his head. “You read the human accounts. These are far more detailed. We need to find the fuckers responsible and bring them to justice.”
“Understood. I’ll get started on them then. I wanted to thank you for taking me onboard.” There was an empty desk facing the one with the laptop on it. “Is that mine?” She pointed to the desk.
Titan’s jaw tightened for a split second. “Yeah.” He didn’t like the idea of them sharing. He didn’t look very happy to see her either. Well, tough shit!
She nodded. “Perfect.”
Titan pulled his phone from his pocket and handed it to her. “I need your number.”
“No problem!” Why didn’t he just get it off her file? Probably still hadn’t read it.
“I’ll send you the Wi-Fi code. I see you have a laptop.” He looked pointedly at the bag on her shoulder. He put the stack of files on her desk.
“Yup. I’m all set.”
“I’ll have the male from IT set you up so that you can use the printer.”
Natasha nodded. She programmed her details into his phone and handed it back. “Thank you. Listen,” she paused. “I know you didn’t want to work with me on this. That it took some convincing to get you to agree …” His eyes narrowed. “But, I just wanted you to know that I’m one hundred percent onboard. I’m—”
“Good!” he cut her off. “I have a couple of things I need to get done. Those should take you the rest of the afternoon. I plan on using you as the backend of this operation.”
“Backend?” She couldn’t help but frown.
“Yeah, for research and—”
“I know what would be expected.” More desk duty. Shit! This sucked.
Titan held her gaze for a few moments. “This needs to be handled methodically. We know some of the males’ identities. I’ll start there with interviews of family members, close friends and colleagues.”
It seemed like a wild goose chase. Natasha knew that these avenues had been explored already with no new information coming to fruition. It was standard to retrace all paths anyway so she didn’t say anything, however, if Titan wanted to find this group and its members he’d need to have a better plan.
Shit! She may as well ask. They were working together on this. “What’s the plan?”
Titan was already on his way to the door. He turned back. “I just told you.” With that he was gone, the door clicking behind him. Natasha squeezed her eyes shut and let out a breath which belied how deeply frustrated she felt. How was she going to prove herself if she wasn’t given a chance? Titan wasn’t experienced in running an investigation such as this and it was clear that he didn’t plan to use her knowledge.
Aside from frustrated, she also felt disappointed. It seemed that her supervisor had really talked Titan into taking her on. He would’ve set the record straight otherwise. It wasn’t something that should bug her, but it did.
In the end, one thing was clear ‒ he didn’t want her there. Another thing was even more clear ‒ she’d have to prove him wrong.
6
It was for the best. The look of hurt that had appeared in her eyes had almost made him want to set the record straight. It was a load of bull. He’d done the right thing. He didn’t owe the female a damned thing. He’d keep her at that desk and out of his way. If she didn’t like him, it was a bonus. He wasn’t here to make friends and most definitely not to partner with a human. Certainly not a beautiful female one.
Not a fuck!
Let Natasha think he had to be talked into taking her on. It pissed him off that Kimberly Stewart had lied. It didn’t surprise him though. The female was bad news.
After sending Natasha a quick message which included the Wi-Fi code and his email address, he put away his phone and sucked in a deep breath.
Most of the human police officers were gone. Off patrolling the streets or whatever it was that they did. Milly was on the phone. Her attention momentarily on the notepad next to the device as she took a message. It was now or never. He slipped into the sheriff’s office and paused for a few seconds. When no one came in after him, he assumed he hadn’t been seen and began his search. It was getting out of here in a few minutes’ time that would pose the greatest risk. He’d alread
y planned how he would handle it if he was busted.
He had to be quiet. There was a multitude of hiding places. He lifted another picture frame off the wall and looked carefully behind it. He scanned the walls looking for a hole. Titan glanced at the sheriff’s desk. His eyes zoned in on the wireless phone. Nah! Surely that was too obvious. Though, obvious was very often the right way to go.
He unsheathed the knife strapped to his thigh and got to work dismantling the device. He carefully cracked the shell open and there it was. A bug. The phone was being tapped by a miniature, wireless radio transmitter. This was a very basic model. Untraceable but effective. It astounded him that this law enforcement agency didn’t sweep for this type of device on a regular basis. They had all sorts of protocols in place at the castle. Especially now that there were humans onsite. One could never be too careful, and this was evidence of that. His gut had been right.
The sheriff was more than likely innocent. This proved it. No one put a tap on themselves, unless of course they were trying to divert attention. Everyone was fair game at this point. Titan put the phone down carefully. He removed his wallet and the tiny transmitter inside it. He placed a bug of his own next to the one already inside the phone. He worked quickly, careful not to disturb the device. He didn’t want to alert the fucker who had placed it there. He did, however, want to know everything that they were privy to. This way, he might be able to be a step or two ahead of the game. He might just be able to guess their next move. The only problem would be sweeping this entire office block for more such devices without being detected. There were a couple of places he could start with and then slowly try to cover all the areas.
Titan finished securing his own bug and closed the phone back up. Next, he completed his check of the Sheriff’s office. The desk, each drawer, the chair as well as the file cabinet in the corner. He even checked the trophies and picture frames on the male’s desk, but came up empty-handed. Sure that the transmitter in the phone was the only device, he moved to the door and stopped to listen for sounds of anyone close by. Milly was on the phone again. This time she spoke with her son; she was asking about her grandchildren and his wife. Making general small-talk. He could hear the sound of someone shuffling papers on a desk. If that person so much as glanced to the left, he would be busted. Someone else was walking but the footfalls were receding. This was as good a time as any.
Titan walked out. He didn’t try to hide the fact that he’d been in the sheriff’s office. He closed the door and shook his head. Titan was no actor, he hoped that anyone seeing him right now would believe that he’d accidentally walked into the wrong office. It was plausible since he’d only arrived onsite this morning. It seemed that many humans believed vampires to be idiots so he’d cash in on that kind of thinking.
Next, Titan walked over to his own office and walked in, keeping his outward appearance casual. He closed the door behind him holding back a sigh. It seemed like no one had noticed him, and if they did, they’d bought the whole wrong office act.
The female had several files open on her desk. She was making notes in a flip folder, also open on her desk. Natasha looked up as he entered but quickly looked back down at the work in front of her.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
“Just dandy.” Short and curt. The sinewy muscles on either side of her neck stood up. Still pissed at him. Perfect!
“I just stopped by to check on you but since you’re okay, I need to go back out.” He pointed at the door behind him.
“Sure. Just let me know if you head out. I’m technically your backup so if anything happens to you it’s my ass.”
Happens to him. This female was a riot. “I’m hard to kill so I wouldn’t worry if I were you, besides, I plan on staying under the radar. The fewer people in Sweetwater who know I’m here the better.”
The female laughed. “I’m sorry.” She waved a hand. “It’s just that …” She laughed some more. “Under the radar,” she repeated his words, “that’s so funny.” She put a hand on her belly, she was laughing so hard.
Titan frowned. “What’s so funny? The part about being hard to kill? Because it’s almost impossible to kill a non-human.”
The female sobered in an instant. “Firstly, you might be hard to kill but it’s not impossible. You’ve already lost two vampire lives to this group. Many of your men have been injured. I believe the attempt on Zane’s life was almost successful.”
Fuck! She had done her homework. He couldn’t help but be impressed.
“Then secondly …” A smile toyed with the edges of her lush mouth. “I’m not sure how you plan on staying under the radar looking like that.”
Titan looked down, taking his appearance in. He was dressed in his full leathers. The same outfit he wore every day. He was a warrior, one of the elite. One of the best.
Natasha got up from behind her desk and walked around him, slowly. She looked him over. Stand your ground! The appraisal was strictly for professional reasons. “Humans don’t dress like that. Don’t get me wrong, I like the whole knife look you have going on, but …” She shook her head, finally allowing herself to smile. “A human would never have so many blades strapped to their person, especially that beautiful curved sword at your back.”
“It’s not a sword, it’s a scimitar”
“Well your scimitar is quite lovely.” Titan noticed how her eyes tracked the entire length of his blade. They flared with excitement for a moment. It’s not for you, he reminded himself. The female likes weapons, that’s it. She raised her brows. “But it will elicit a whole lot of stares if you go into town dressed like that.”
The female was right. He hadn’t planned this as well as he had thought. “Noted,” he growled. “I have somewhere I need to be.”
“Right.” She frowned. “I’m hoping you’re going to brief me on the details of our mission at some point. I can’t be of any use to you if I don’t know what our angle is.”
“I already briefed you.” He narrowed his eyes, willing the female to shut it. “Finish working through those. I will start interviewing the family and friends of those involved tomorrow. Someone must know something.”
“I doubt you’ll get anything from any of them. Local authorities already tried. It’s good that you’re retracing the steps, but you need to—”
“I can be persuasive,” he cut her off, curling back his lip and showing one of his fangs. The female didn’t flinch back or gasp or any of the other things humans normally did.
If anything, he was sure he saw interest flare in her dark eyes. Her chest seemed to expand a little further, a little quicker. She liked his fangs. Not a fuck! He was reading this all wrong. Titan reminded himself that although he worked with human females, he had very little understanding of them. Make that, he had no understanding. They very rarely said what they meant. Mixed signals were commonplace. He’d seen it daily in his dealings with the creatures. They would say that they weren’t interested in a male when their bodies were clearly aroused. Or they would declare that they had no feelings whatsoever. and yet he could scent hurt or anger on them. It happened more often than he cared to think about. It boggled his mind. Besides, he hadn’t repented nearly enough for his actions. He pushed down the wayward emotions as memories flooded his mind, shaming him.
“Nice gnashers.” Natasha’s gaze was firmly on his lips. “Makes me wonder why you need to carry so many weapons.”
“I like my blades.” He put his hand to the hilt of the knife on his thigh and gave it a rub. Natasha followed the movement.
She licked her lips. “I can relate.” She unbuttoned her loose-fitting jacket, pulled it open at one side and palmed the gun that was strapped under her arm.
Fuck!
Air seized in his lungs and his dick decided it was time to come out and play. Thank fuck he was wearing tight pants. Her breasts were … they were … mag-fucking-nificent. So big for such a small female. He forced his gaze to move to her hand which still caressed the gun. All
he could think of was her hand on his … Not a chance that was happening. Not ever! Titan gave a tight smile as he looked her in the eye. “I prefer hand-to-hand combat. Guns are not my thing.”
She narrowed her eyes for a moment. It was like she was angry with him or something. Why would his comment make her angry? One small conversation and he was already fucking this up. What had he said? Maybe it was something he hadn’t said.
Hand-to-hand combat.
Right! She waited for him to invite her for a quick sparring session, one that would involve his dick inside her. She also waited for the familiar feel of anger to tighten her throat. The surge of adrenaline that came with it. There was a surge alright, only it wasn’t adrenaline, it was lust. It was all the muscle, the weapons strapped to his honed body. It was definitely the tiny cleft in his jaw and those hauntingly beautiful blue eyes. She stared into those eyes right now; the guy had a sad, lost look about him. It brought out things in her she never thought she had. Like the need to nurture and the need to rescue, which was a crock of shit. He did not need rescuing. Besides, the guy didn’t like her and he was a sexist as well. He was no better than any of the other assholes she’d been forced to work with. What she needed was to shoot something, namely a couple of targets or better yet, some clay pigeons. Moving targets were so much more fun. “You shouldn’t knock it till you try it,” she finally said. Breaking the moment. What moment? That hadn’t been a moment.
Titan cleared his throat. “What?” He gave a small shake of the head.
Okay, maybe it had been a moment. She buttoned up her jacket. Oh, that was it, she’d had the girls out. No wonder he couldn’t think straight. Trust a pair of triple Ds to do that to a man every time, despite wearing two sports bras.
A Mate for Titan (The Program Book 7) Page 4
