Five Minutes Longer

by Five Minutes Longer [Dreamspinner MM] (retail) (epub)

  Finn stepped forward before Talon had a chance to say anything. “Hi, my name’s Finn, and I’m starving.” He grinned. It sounded like an announcement at an AA meeting. It’s been three days since my last meal.

  The lady completely ignored Finn’s outstretched hand and pulled him to her. “Nonsense,” she said firmly as Finn was squashed rather alarmingly against a very ample bosom. He inhaled quickly. She smelled of cinnamon and baked yummy stuff.

  Finn’s belly growled again.

  “Oh, you poor thing,” the woman exclaimed. “I’m Betty, surprisingly enough.” She waved at the sign. “Go and sit yourself down.”

  Finn followed Talon to the end booth, and Talon slid in decisively. Finn was quick enough to notice that he’d walked past two empty ones until he got to where he could put his back to the wall and see everyone who walked in. It seemed instinctive. Maybe in a few weeks, he’d be doing things like that too.

  For the first time since yesterday, Finn allowed himself to get a little excited. He was in the FBI—almost. He was out from under Deke’s eagle eye, and he was about to get fed. Finn loved food. Any kind, really. In fact, he wasn’t entirely sure he’d ever met a meal he didn’t like. He scanned the menu eagerly as Betty brought coffee to the table.

  She chuckled as she saw Finn’s rapt concentration. “I’ll leave you boys a minute to decide.” She went to pour a few more refills.

  Finn absently reached over for the basket with the sugars and creamer, dumped four creamers and two sugars in his coffee, stirred, and took a cautious sip. He was very interested in the breakfast platter, which seemed to just about include every breakfast food known to man, and he looked up as a sudden awful thought occurred to him, only to find Talon looking at him in astonishment.

  “How the fuck do you possibly stay in shape, drinking like that?”

  Finn blinked at Talon’s question. He thinks I’m in shape? A warm feeling settled in his belly, and it had nothing to do with the mouthful of creamy goodness he’d just inhaled. He ignored Talon’s question, assuming it was rhetorical. “How soon will we be doing any fitness tests this morning?” He would cry if he had to settle for whole wheat toast.

  Talon grinned. “You can eat. It’s paperwork and medical first.”

  Finn didn’t reply. He got too lost in the smile. Talon’s face completely changed when he smiled. He almost seemed… normal. And that wasn’t any sort of a jab at his enhanced status. It was more an acknowledgment he wasn’t a complete asshole every minute of the day.

  Betty appeared and beamed at them both. “What ya havin’, boys?”

  Talon smoothly asked for a large breakfast platter with sunny-side up eggs and bacon.

  Finn, utterly relieved, asked for exactly the same and picked up his coffee.

  Betty paused. “You want exactly the same?” She looked at Finn, and he glanced at Talon, who had quirked his eyebrow in a silent challenge.

  Finn raised his chin. “Yes, please.” Fuck, if it included a side of fried eyeballs, he’d be on the next plane out. “So paperwork on a Saturday?” It was all Finn could think of to start any sort of a conversation.

  Talon raised his eyebrow higher. “The agency isn’t Monday to Friday, nine to five. If you want that, you’re in the wrong place.”

  Finn put his cup down sharply. He hadn’t meant that. Talon had to know he hadn’t meant that. “I—” When he saw the humor on Talon’s face, Finn bit off the angry retort, both due to the surprise that it was there and from the knowledge Talon was just yanking his chain.

  “So why do you want to join the FBI?” Talon took a sip of his black coffee.

  Finn was ready for this. He had a whole speech planned that he’d trotted out at interviews. He could even quote the latest terror and violent crime stats he cleverly worked into his answer. But as he opened his mouth, it suddenly clicked that Talon was putting out feelers. If they were going to be friends, giving him a BS line wouldn’t win him any more points.

  “Some agents came to talk at our school when I was fourteen. Nowheresville, Iowa, didn’t have a high college uptake for seniors. In fact, the graduation rate wasn’t all that good either.” Finn picked nervously at the napkin. He could feel the icy-blue eyes bearing down on him. “Anyway, something they said just kinda clicked with me. I kept my nose clean, graduated. Got my degree.” He grinned. “I even worked as a bookkeeper part-time.” Finn looked up, hoping to see another smile, but Talon’s face was unsurprised.

  Of course.

  “You know all this,” Finn said accusingly. He had no doubt Talon had seen his file.

  “I knew about the job and the college,” Talon conceded. “I’ve seen your grades and your references. I didn’t know what made you want to join.” He hesitated. “I guess it was hard to study while you were working a job.”

  Finn fumed. He knew in Talon’s half-assed way, he was trying to offer some justification to explain his average grades when he was so determined and had wanted to join the FBI since he was fourteen. Finn lowered his head. There was no way Talon would ever find out how he struggled with reading occasionally. It wasn’t that hard anymore, and audio was a godsend. He learned a few tricks to adapt and could usually correctly anticipate the words even if he couldn’t always make them out.

  Betty arrived, and Finn looked up thankfully. She was carrying such a huge tray of food, Finn thought they would both be lucky to get through it. Then he gaped as he saw the teenager standing behind her with more stuff.

  Talon chuckled again. “Stop teasing him, Betty.”

  Betty grinned and waved the teenager to the next table.

  Finn let out a low breath and swallowed. There was still more food on there than he’d eat in two days. Eggs, bacon, sausage patties, mushrooms, grits, and toast on one plate, and a huge fluffy stack of pancakes on another. And it wasn’t just the variety; it was the quantity. He wouldn’t need a box—he would need a tow truck.

  “I only eat this on a Saturday, but she does the best omelet I’ve ever eaten as well.”

  Finn nodded in amazement. I mean, yeah—who’d wanna cook?

  He gave up gracefully when he was just over halfway through. He could have pushed on, but he didn’t think a food coma was a good idea for his first day.

  Talon waved his money away when Finn got out his wallet after Betty cleared their table. He reluctantly refused a box, as he didn’t want to look like some kid going in with his school lunch on his first day either.

  Talon didn’t say a word, just allowed Betty to try to wrap her arms around him as he stood up to leave. Betty waved them both off with an admonishment to stay safe.

  Just as they cleared the last booth, heading for the exit, Finn clearly heard the words, “I ain’t coming here again. No idea they let that sort in here.” The older woman who said it dropped her fork in disgust. “Don’t eat it, Barney,” she said to the guy seated opposite her, who Finn assumed was her husband. “You don’t know what you might catch.”

  Finn inhaled a sharp breath and stared at Talon’s retreating back. He hadn’t paused, but he must have heard what she said. Finn deliberately looked the woman up and down. Her pink blouse stretched over her ample belly, and her many chins wobbled as she spoke.

  He stopped and deliberately leaned over. “That’s probably just as well, madam,” he said quietly. “You could always try the egg-white omelet and low-fat vegetable smoothie. My colleague, as you can see, wouldn’t touch either of those. He doesn’t need to diet.”

  Finn heard the indignant gasp as he walked away without saying another word. He looked up as Talon stood in the doorway with a puzzled look on his face. He probably heard Finn be rude to a member of the public. Another reason he wouldn’t make the four weeks.

  TALON HEARD what the woman said, but it didn’t bother him. It was barely a blip on his radar. He’d heard far worse over the years, said by people who could actually physically hurt him, and he didn’t care what some random customer said.

  What he was struggling with w
as the quiet response he heard from Finn. Not only did Finn stick up for him in the sarcastic way he appreciated, but he did it not expecting to be heard. He wasn’t doing it for show or to gain ground with Talon, and it kind of knocked him off balance a little.

  “Is that usual?”

  Finn’s question brought him out of his thoughts as he automatically showed his pass at the barrier.

  “I’ve seen plenty of photos of field offices and obviously been for the interviews. I’ve never seen one with a barrier.”

  Talon waved at the guard as they were shown through. “No,” he said bluntly. “That’s for us.” He didn’t offer any further explanation. The thought that enhanced were less trustworthy even if they wore a badge burned something deep in his gut. Talon ground his teeth and kept the sigh silent.

  For the first time, he might actually regret the situation when his prospective new partner failed because Talon knew with what he was about to be put through, the kid would run home screaming to his mommy. He was right when he told Finn the morning was for medical and paperwork. It was what he set up for the afternoon that would finally convince Gregory the unit should be for enhanced only.

  Chapter Four

  FINN FOLLOWED Talon up what he now termed the “back stairs.” He still hadn’t seen what the rest of the building looked like yet, and it didn’t seem like Talon was interested in stopping now. He led them into the same reception area as yesterday, still unmanned, but through the third door this time. There was no sound from Gregory’s office, so Finn had no idea if he was working or not.

  Finn stopped in astonishment as they walked into what looked like a mini hospital. There were three treatment tables and all sorts of equipment dotted around the walls. Some he recognized, obviously, like the basic blood-pressure cuffs, but some computerized terminals looked like they belonged on a spaceship.

  “Doc?” Talon grunted as they walked in.

  A young woman sat in front of a computer screen. Finn guessed her to be around thirty years old, with dark brown hair and green eyes. Slim, pretty, and professional in her white coat. She turned around as soon as they entered and stood, smiling. “Agent Valdez. And this must be Mr. Mayer.” She looked at Finn pleasantly. “I’m Dr. Natalie Edwards.”

  Finn put his hand out automatically. “Nice to meet you.” He returned the smile, but her attention was already back on Talon. Not that I blame her, he thought with resignation, and he proceeded to watch her flirt for a couple of minutes, though she got absolutely no reaction whatsoever from Talon.

  “Doc’s just going to go over your results. I’ll be back for you in a little while.” And Talon disappeared through the door they’d entered in.

  Finn was immediately given a small plastic jar and directed to the bathroom. “Monthly drug testing is compulsory.” Dr. Edwards smiled again.

  It turned out Finn didn’t have to have much of a medical because his last one was recent enough. Dr. Edwards basically went through his general health profile and confirmed some personal details, had a quick listen to his chest, and hooked him up to a monitor. She drew what seemed to Finn as an enormous amount of blood and split it into four vials, and asked a ton of medical questions about his family.

  She looked up as Talon let himself back in the room after an hour. Finn was just buttoning his shirt. “He’s all yours, Agent Valdez,” she said cheerfully, and Finn thanked her and followed Talon.

  “Come on. Paperwork. You get to sit on your ass for another hour.” Talon led Finn back to the elevator and pressed for level two.

  Finn still hadn’t thought of an intelligent response by the time the elevator doors opened again, and he stepped out into what seemed like a corridor.

  Agent Gregory was just coming out of an office two doors down. He looked up and smiled. “Finn, good morning. Are you ready to meet your teammates?”

  Finn’s jaw dropped. Teammates? He thought it was just him and Talon. He glanced over at Talon in confusion and took in Talon’s stony face.

  Gregory sighed. “Talon, you were supposed to go over the background of the unit this morning.”

  “There wasn’t time. He needed feeding.”

  Finn rounded on Talon as the injustice registered. “You ate more than I did,” he blurted, feeling like a child.

  Talon raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Too easy. Way too easy. You’re not gonna last two minutes in there.”

  “Talon,” Gregory almost growled, and Talon shrugged.

  Finn took a slow breath and stared at the plain door Gregory had indicated, his good mood and excitement quickly evaporating.

  “Come on, then. They’re all waiting,” Gregory said, pushing the door open.

  Talon waved Finn through in front of him, and Finn followed Agent Gregory, wondering if the gates of hell were this hard to walk through.

  Probably not.

  Finn stood uncertainly as the four giants who were seated around a large conference table all turned toward him, four livid scars under their left eye and every one of them staring at Finn with a mixture of distrust and contempt.

  Crap. He looked at Talon uncertainly, but Talon just walked around the opposite side of the table and sat.

  “Sit down, Finn, and I’ll do introductions,” Gregory said.

  As Finn dived into the nearest seat, a low voice drawled, “Yeah, Finn. What’s your name and where do you come from?”

  Finn flushed as the snickers rose around the table.

  “That’s enough,” Gregory snapped, and everyone subsided. “I have as little choice in this as any of you.”

  The silence around the room was deafening, and Finn stared at Gregory openmouthed. Fucking A. His boss—the one guy he was convinced yesterday was on his side—just admitted to the room that he’d been forced into having Finn here. It was like high school all over again.

  Finn pressed his lips together and glanced back down. Four weeks. He’d get out of here in four weeks, and then he’d go and see about starting the rest of his life. He had a brand-new degree he could take out for a spin, and just because he wouldn’t make the cut for the FBI didn’t mean he couldn’t see what the rest of the Sunshine State had to offer. If he got desperate, he’d go check out Disney or something.

  He suddenly looked up as he heard his own voice echo around the room. He stared in shocked silence at the TV in front of them.

  “Last night’s assailants had forgotten about the backup feed. There were no recordings in real time, but the engineer found this while he was doing repairs.”

  Finn cringed as he heard himself announce his agent status to the guys with the baseball bats, expecting to be shot down or ridiculed by one of Talon’s team. He didn’t even dare take his face from the screen to check their reactions.

  “Not like you to let someone get the drop on you, Talon.”

  Finn stared in amazement. He heard the teasing in the voice, but it wasn’t directed at him. He met the eyes of the speaker. Another blond-haired giant, but Finn had to school his features carefully not to appear shocked. The entire left side of his face was covered in ugly scars, even twisting his mouth a little, but his mark was still livid on his skin.

  The man stood and offered his hand to Finn. “That took some guts, kid.” He gestured to the screen with his chin, and Finn returned the handshake cautiously, his own hand completely disappearing in the massive grip. “The name’s Gael Peterson.” He nodded around the room. “Sawyer Rollins, Vance Connelly, and the grumpy one in the corner is Eli Stuart.”

  Most of the agents stood to shake Finn’s hand, some pressing a little too hard, but Finn was determined to hide when it hurt. Sawyer and Eli were both what he would have called tall-for-a-human size, neither as large as Talon. Sawyer’s green eyes flickered over him expressionlessly, but he did at least extend his hand, unlike Eli. Finn held his own out to Eli, but he never even looked in his direction, so Finn dropped it awkwardly.

  “Welcome to the crazy house.” Vance pumped Finn’s hand enthusiastically. Finn tried not to g
ape at the sheer size of him. He was the biggest individual Finn had ever seen.

  Gregory cleared his throat, and Finn sat quickly. They all looked at the screen. “No IDs possible, unfortunately,” Gregory added.

  “Like we need them?” Gael said, the sarcasm in his voice again apparent. “Look at their feet.”

  Finn glanced at where the vid had paused. It showed Finn taking a threatening step toward the group as the first guy turned and planted a boot in Talon’s ribs. They were all wearing nondescript jeans, but Finn blinked at the matching black-shined dress shoes. “They’re cops,” he blurted and looked at Talon in horror. Cops. “Why would they do that?” he asked, then cringed, forgetting his determination to stay quiet.

  “You been living under a rock the past twenty years, kid?” Sawyer stood and walked to the coffee machine.

  Finn opened his mouth and shut it just as quickly.

  Talon spoke up. “What Sawyer means is, there are just as many law enforcement professionals who don’t want us on this side of the fence as there are criminals.”

  Finn nodded. “That makes sense, I suppose. You could all beat their asses and look cool doing it.”

  Gael spluttered after taking a mouthful of coffee. A couple of them grinned. Talon just raised an eyebrow.

  Finn focused his attention back on Gregory, quietly pleased with himself.

  “If it helps,” Vance spoke quietly, “the first guy is a native Floridian. Definitely Tampa. The second one I would say Atlanta.”

  Finn looked in surprise. He hadn’t thought about an accent particularly. It must be one of Vance’s abilities.

  Gregory nodded and turned off the screen. “To summarize, you’ve all met Finn. We have four weeks to prove this can work. I expect your cooperation and your assistance, but that starts tomorrow. Finn has some short profile tests to sit this morning, and later you will all be in the gym.” Gregory smiled and walked out as a few of the others got up. One or two murmured something pleasant to Finn, but he didn’t hear anything after the word “test.”