Dark Guardian Found

by I. T. Lucas

  The tear that slid down her cheek cut into his heart like a poisoned dagger.

  “I know. And I love you too. But it’s so hard, and I feel so alone. When I imagined you meeting my mom while keeping your distance from me, I just couldn’t. I don’t want her to think we are having problems.”

  It took a Herculean effort not to go to Nathalie and take her into his arms. But he knew better than to succumb to his longing. The smallest of touches could trigger his animal nature. He couldn’t risk it. “We can explain what’s going on. She would understand.”

  “Yeah, I realized that once I had a moment to think. That’s why I wanted to ask if you can be late for work tomorrow. She’ll be here around eight-thirty in the morning. We could have some quiet time with her.”

  “No problem. I’ll be here.”

  “Sober?”

  “Yes, but probably hungover.”

  Nathalie twisted the bottom of her maternity tunic between her fingers. “Are you sure there is no other solution?”

  “Would you prefer me in stasis?”

  “No, definitely not. I’ll take you drunk over semi-dead any day.”

  “Me too. But it’s getting harder. I’m terrified of waking up in the middle of the night and going after you. I would’ve stayed somewhere else, but then I’m terrified that you’ll need me and I won’t be there for you.” He rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “Maybe you should talk with some of the others. Not only Kian or Bridget, but maybe Edna or the other Guardians. Someone might know something. You’ll never know if you don’t ask.”

  “True. I think I’ll go to the gym and see who I can corner.” He lifted the whiskey bottle in front of his face and grimaced. “It’s not like I’m eager to start on this.” After this ordeal was over, Andrew swore he would never touch alcohol for as long as he lived, and given his near immortality it meant never. He hated the taste of it, he hated the drunkenness, and he hated the hangovers.

  Bridget had refused to prescribe him the strong sleeping pills he’d asked for, claiming it would impair his faculties, making him too loopy to function at work.

  For reasons he wasn’t completely clear on, Andrew really didn’t want to lose his job. The main one was the access to classified information, but it was more than that. His work was part of his old self, the human part, and he wasn’t ready to give it up. In fact, his old office was the only thing affording him some sense of normality in a life that had gone crazy.

  “Don’t you want to hear why she ran out on us?”

  Andrew had a pretty good idea. “Because she was afraid that once her immortality was discovered, she would be experimented on and so would you. She sought to protect you.”

  Nathalie pouted. “Yeah, that’s about it. Still, she could’ve called to let me know she was alive.”

  “It was probably a risk she didn’t want to take. If you had no idea whether she was dead or alive, you couldn’t be questioned. Wouldn’t you have done the same in her situation?”

  She thought for a moment. “If I believed I was a risk to my daughter and that by leaving I’d ensure her safety, then the answer is yes.”

  “I didn’t have a chance to really talk to her yesterday. We were never alone. But tomorrow I’m going to.”

  He nodded and pushed up to his feet. “I’m sorry things have to be this way between us. I wish it could be different. You have no idea what it does to me not to hold you.” He let his head drop. “Or put my ear to your belly and listen to our daughter’s heartbeat up close. It’s killing me.”

  As another tear slid down Nathalie’s cheek, Andrew felt bad for sharing his suffering with her. But letting her think it was easy for him to keep away from her would’ve been worse.

  “I love you, Andrew. And we will survive this as we survived everything else.”

  “I love you more,” he teased.

  On an impulse, he bent down and kissed the top of her head, then forced himself to bolt out the door before doing anything stupid.

  Down at the gym, Andrew was surprised to find William using one of the treadmills. Not running, just walking leisurely while reading a book, but that was more than Andrew had ever seen him do.

  “Hey, William. What brought you here?”

  William pushed his glasses up his nose. “I’m exercising.”

  Strolling at a speed of two miles per hour didn’t qualify as exercise, but Andrew didn’t have the heart to correct him. “Good for you,” he said instead.

  “I have a lady friend who likes to take long walks. I need to get in some sort of shape to keep up.”

  That was interesting. “Anyone I know?”

  “I don’t think so. She works at Amanda’s lab, a postdoc. Very smart and very pretty.”

  Andrew rubbed his palm over his jaw, thinking of a polite way to ask the obvious. “She’s human, of course.”

  “Naturally.”

  “Thralling a smart woman like her must be difficult.”

  “I’m not thralling Hannah. I would never risk damaging her beautiful mind.”

  Okay… “So she knows about us?”

  “Of course not.”

  William was leaving him no choice but to be blunt. “How are you having sex with her without biting her and then having to thrall her?”

  “Easy. I don’t have sex with her.”

  Andrew’s jaw dropped. “How? Aren’t all immortal men horny beasts?”

  “Not me. I’m more of a cerebral kind of guy. I enjoy a good conversation.”

  “But how do you fight it?” Maybe William had some trick up his sleeve that Andrew could use.

  “Obviously, I’m not like the others. Just look at me.” He waved a hand over his body. “I think it’s because I’m so many generations separated from the source. The immortal genes get diluted.”

  Andrew shook his head. “Not likely. I’m certainly farther down the line from you, and every day is a battle for me.”

  William shrugged. “You’re a newly turned immortal. It will probably get easier with time. I’m just grateful I don’t have these kinds of problems. A strong sex drive is very distracting.”

  Tell me about it.

  Even before the transition, the preoccupation with sex had been a problem, but then most men were in the same boat. Still, it had been nothing in comparison to what he was experiencing now. The only thing that seemed to numb the urges was a shitload of alcohol.

  “How about stasis? One good bite and lights out until after your daughter is born. Problem solved.”

  Andrew shook his head. “I can’t. For many reasons. If I don’t show up at work for three months, I’ll get fired. But more than that I want to be there for Nathalie when she needs me, and I certainly want to witness the birth of my child.”

  Walking slowly on the treadmill, William pondered the problem but seemed to come up with nothing useful. “Maybe your urges will subside soon.”

  That wasn’t likely either, given that six months had done nothing to tone them down. On the other hand, he was still in the process of transitioning. His fangs had reached their full length only a month ago, and his venom glands had become active only recently. Who knew, maybe in a year or two he would be just as tame as William.

  One could hope.

  Chapter 19: Eva

  “I have the financials on the Greewald case ready,” Sharon said as Eva walked into the office.

  “Good, print them out and put them on my desk.”

  “It would be easier to send you the electronic file.”

  “I don’t want to stare at a computer screen, I told you that a thousand times. Is it so difficult to just do as I ask?”

  Sharon lifted her palms in surrender. “You’re the boss.”

  Annoying girl. Sharon was so stubborn. But Eva was even more so. She liked going over reports the old-fashioned way. With a red pen on white paper.

  Eva sighed and sat at her desk. She could’ve been nicer about it, though. Her reluctanc
e to read things on the screen was a standing joke between them, and she shouldn’t have snapped at Sharon.

  Only a week had passed since Eva had parted with Nathalie, and already she couldn’t wait to be back. Leaving her pregnant daughter and going back home to Tampa had been difficult, and if Eva was honest with herself, so was leaving Bhathian.

  The worst part was that she couldn’t share her great news with her crew. Hey, guys, I don’t need to hide anymore, and I have my daughter back.

  Eva needed to tell them something, though. Her mood swings were drawing worried glances. One moment she was happy because she had her daughter back, the next one she was sad because she couldn’t drop everything and go to her whenever she felt like it.

  Flying back and forth coast to coast in addition to her various business trips wasn’t a solution. She needed to move her base and crew to Los Angeles. Her clients wouldn’t even have to know. The only contact she had with them was via the Internet and the good old postal service. There was only one client who’d seen her, in disguise naturally, and he would be fine with the move. Most of the assignments he was sending her way weren’t local anyway.

  Eva glanced at Tessa, and as always the girl immediately felt it and looked away from her computer screen. “Do you need anything?”

  “Did I tell you that I met a cousin of mine in Los Angeles?”

  Tessa frowned. “No. I thought you didn’t have any family.”

  That was what Eva had always claimed. “I didn’t know I had a cousin either until I met her by chance in a coffee shop. She looks so much like me that I had to ask. Apparently, my grandmother on my mother’s side had a sister and Nathalie is her granddaughter.”

  “Fascinating.”

  “I was so happy to discover that I had family, and she was so sweet, inviting me over to her apartment and introducing me to her husband. They are such an adorable couple, and they are expecting their first baby.”

  Tessa started doodling on her yellow legal pad, a nervous habit that popped up only when she was upset. “How come you didn’t tell me about your cousin when you came back? Finding out about her doesn’t seem like something that would’ve slipped your mind.”

  “No, but I had some thinking to do. I’m contemplating moving us to Los Angeles.”

  Tessa’s hand stilled, and she looked up. “Really? Because of a distant cousin?”

  Eva shrugged. “She’s the only family I have. So yes. Besides, we can run this business from anywhere. I’m flying all over on assignments anyway.”

  “I guess. Did you say anything to Sharon and Nick?”

  “Not yet. I made my decision five minutes ago.”

  Tessa scribbled ‘Los Angeles’ on her pad, then decorated it with flowers. “Do you want me to tell them while you’re gone? Or do you want me to keep it a secret until you come back?”

  “You can tell them. We’ll talk about it when I’m back from this assignment. It has to be a unanimous decision. I don’t want any of you to be miserable because I’m in the mood to move.”

  “I don’t mind, and I don’t think they will either. It’s not like any of us have friends here that we will miss.”

  Sad but true.

  Her crew of misfits, of which Eva considered herself a member, didn’t play well with others. Maybe people sensed their oddity, or maybe they just felt different and didn’t think they could fit in with the normals.

  “You sure you don’t want me to drive you to the airport?” Tessa asked for the fifth time.

  “No, sweetie, you have work to do, and I already called a taxi. Come give me a hug.” Eva kissed Tessa’s cheek and then walked out, pulling her carry-on behind her.

  For this assignment she didn’t need her more elaborate costumes. A blond wig, blue contact lenses, and a tight dress would do. She had a scumbag to lure and eliminate.

  Her crew didn’t know that this time Eva wasn’t going on a routine corporate espionage trip. She found it strange, though, that Tessa hadn’t asked questions about an unscheduled assignment that neither Sharon nor Nick had done any prep work for.

  Was it possible that the girl suspected something?

  After all, it had all started with Tessa.

  That first kill five years ago, which no one other than the two of them knew about, was what started Eva on her path. She’d finally realized why she’d been granted her special powers.

  Eva had a job to do that others could not.

  Get rid of scum.

  The taxi pulled up to a stop in front of her house and the cabbie got out. “Good afternoon.” He reached for Eva’s carry-on. “Let me.” He hefted it into the trunk.

  “Thank you.” She smiled at him when he opened the door for her.

  Getting comfortable in the back seat, she didn’t take off the dark sunglasses that covered half of her face, but she loosened the scarf she had wrapped around her head.

  On that night, five years ago, all the pieces had fallen into place. Before, Eva hadn’t known she could kill a man with such ease. Her strength and her super-hearing and her super-speed were gifts meant to be used for more than the simple detective jobs she was getting hired for.

  And then there was her name.

  Her mother had named her Evangeline, but her father hadn’t liked it and they had compromised on Eva. The official meaning of the name was a bringer of good news, but Eva thought of it as having a very different meaning: an avenging angel.

  There was nothing that brought her more satisfaction than freeing the world of the worst kind of vermin. Those who picked up little girls like Tessa off the streets, abused them horrendously, and then sold them to other vermin.

  Eva was the avenger of lost girls. Those who were abandoned by everyone and missed by no one.

  By herself, she couldn’t go after the big fish—they never went anywhere without a horde of bodyguards. Not even to bring a hot date into their hotel room. Killing one of those without getting caught was difficult.

  Instead, she went after the middlemen in the hierarchy of scum.

  There hadn’t been many. Each target required a thorough investigation she had to do on her own. Other than the snitches she paid for information, Eva didn’t involve anyone else. The informants were left with the impression that she was searching for a lost girl. A client’s runaway daughter. A perfect story, given her day job.

  Eva chuckled. She was a private eye with an interesting side hobby.

  At the airport, she didn’t board a plane. Instead, she got into another taxi and headed for the Four Seasons. Her target wasn’t staying at the fancy hotel, but according to her informant, he would be visiting a nearby club tonight.

  Tomorrow, he would be found dead from a drug overdose, and no one would remember the “hooker” whom he’d taken to his room.

  Chapter 20: Nathalie

  “Don’t go the stasis route,” Amanda said.

  Andrew paced the length of their living room. “Then what do you suggest I do?”

  The intervention had been Bhathian’s idea. Kian and Syssi, Amanda and Dalhu, and of course Bridget had been invited to a brainstorming session to help find a solution to Andrew’s misery.

  And Nathalie’s.

  It wasn’t only about all the things she was missing—Andrew’s arms around her, his hands rubbing her back when it ached or massaging her feet after a long day at the café—all the sweet little things he’d been doing for her before his fangs became active.

  Andrew was suffering and her heart was breaking for him.

  He was getting worse, mainly because he was so terrified of losing it and attacking her.

  There had been talk about Andrew moving out and staying at her old place, and Bhathian moving in so she’d have someone to help her in case of an emergency.

  If no one came up with a better solution, Nathalie would not see Andrew until the delivery. He said they could talk on the phone, but she knew that regardless of where he was sleeping, he would get wasted as soon as he came home from work. Andrew was conv
inced that the animal urges of a newly transitioned immortal male were too powerful for his brain to control.

  Nathalie would’ve dismissed his fears as gross exaggerations, but all the other immortals sided with Andrew.

  Agh. She hated this kind of talk as much as the forced separation. Andrew and all the others were talking about him like he was some rabid dog. Not her wonderful, loving husband. Kian was convinced that Andrew’s restraint would eventually snap and he would attack her. Was she fooling herself that he would never harm her no matter what?

  Amanda crossed her arms over her chest. “Anything but stasis. Dalhu looked like a corpse after only a week. Imagine what you’ll look like after eight.”

  The image Amanda had painted wasn’t something Nathalie wanted to revisit. “I agree with Amanda. I don’t want you to do it either.”

  “Then the best idea is for me to move out.”

  Kian shook his head. “Risky. Nothing will stop you from getting into your car and driving over here in the middle of the night. I’ll have to inform security not to let you in.”

  “Then do it.”

  “There must be something we are overlooking,” Syssi said.

  Dalhu raised his finger. “May I suggest something?”

  Andrew stopped his pacing. “Please.”

  “The nice prison at the basement has a door an immortal can’t break through. You can stay there. Still close to Nathalie in case she needs you, but safely locked away at night.”

  “That might work… What do you think, Nathalie?” Andrew asked.

  Nathalie hated it, but it was better than the other idea. “I prefer this to you sharing a room with Jackson, that’s for sure. And you’ll be closer to me. But I still hate to see you suffering like that. What about an induced coma? With intravenous nutrition and whatever else goes in there.”

  Bridget looked thoughtful. “I don’t even know if it’ll work on an immortal. I’ve never tried keeping an immortal sedated for that long. But I can look into it and we can give it a try, see how it works for a day or two.”