by Carly Fall
“Another time I found her out on the deck at four o’clock in the morning watching a deer. We had to have special locks installed on the top of the doors to keep her inside. When she got a bit older, her and her cousins used to spend hours and hours in the forest behind our house playing and exploring. She got stuck in a tree one time. She was so high up we had to call the fire department.
“Another time we had to shave her head because it was so matted with sap. She came home one day and told us how her and her cousins had tracked a bear for a half-hour. A bear, Rayner. What in the world was she thinking? Then there was the time she jumped off a bunch of rocks into a lake and broke her arm. She was lucky she didn’t break her damn neck.” Her father paused, looked at the table and shook his head again, as if he couldn’t believe he had actually survived Faith growing up.
“As she got older, we caught her out there drinking beer every now and then with her friends. It seemed the more we tried to keep her grounded, the more she fought to fly. She wanted to explore—come to the big city—so we let her, and look what happened. She's a special girl—there’s even a legend about her—The Woman With Fire for Hair. But, in retrospect, this was bound to happen.” Her father exhaled loudly, and Faith was surprised at how much he talked. His usual nature was one of quiet and calm. Except where she was concerned.
She remembered every instance that he talked about. Yes, she had been trouble for her parents, but she hadn’t meant any harm. Always wanting to try new things, to push herself into new adventures, she had thrown caution to the wind many times. Because of her carefree nature, her father had become overly protective. He called it “saving her from herself,” she called it “prison.” And he was right: the more he tried to ground her, to keep her line, to live her life as he wanted her to, the more she revolted.
The fight to allow her to move to Phoenix had been an epic battle of wills.
“You’ll be swallowed up alive in a big city, Faith!” he father had yelled.
“No I won’t! I’m twenty-three now, and I can do what I want, Dad. I don’t need you protecting me any longer.”
“As long as you’re under my roof, you will do as I say. And I say that you will not move to Phoenix. If you want to move out, stay in Flagstaff so you’re close to us.”
“Dad, I’m not a baby anymore. I don’t need you to watch over me.”
“Then why were we in the hospital last week? Let me tell you why. It was because you decided to go off the trail while hiking with your girlfriend and you ended up in a poison ivy bush. You have to quit being so adventurous, Faith. You need to follow the path that has been carved out for you, not make new ones.”
“Let her go, Chevey,” her mother had said. “Let her be responsible for herself for a change instead of you hovering over her all the time.”
“But the legend—”
“Chevey, let her go.”
Her father had always been so certain that she was The Woman With Fire for Hair.
Faith brought her attention back to the present. Rayner was covertly checking his watch. They had been talking for just over a half hour. “Do you think there is anything else about Faith that I should know?” he asked.
Her mother stared at the table for a moment while her father stared into space. “If you're a good friend of Faith, as you say you are, you know the answer to that. My baby is a good person,” her mother said quietly, still staring at the table. “She may have had just a little bit of wild child in her, but I don't believe she would've gotten into anything illegal.” She was quiet for a moment, then she met Rayner's eyes, truth flowing from them like water from a garden hose. “My girl is good.”
Faith felt herself ready to cry. Oh, hell. She was crying. Who knew ghosts could cry?
Her father stood up, then her mother right behind him. “Rayner,” he said, “you have the soul of a warrior. I'm glad you're on our side. Godspeed, son, and keep us updated on what you find. I hope at the end of your search it's my little girl, alive.”
Rayner stood and Faith did as well. She watched as her parents left the coffee shop. She looked down at the table and noticed one of Rayner's hand was where her hip would have been if she was a solid form. For some reason, it seemed like it would be the most natural thing in the world for him to hold her intimately. She closed her eyes and imagined herself being able to feel Rayner's touch at her hip, at her hand. It would be warm, his skin soft. If she leaned back against him, his hard wall of a chest would cushion her, his body entrapping her in a promise of safety.
“C'mon, Faith,” he said quietly. She opened her eyes to see the empty space of where her parents had been. Her form leaned against Rayner, surrounding him in the mist of her being.
She reluctantly pulled herself away from him and followed him out the door. He held the door for her this time and they walked for a few moments in silence.
“What now?” she asked as they stood on the sidewalk outside the coffee house.
She watched as Rayner checked his watch. "Now I need to go meet some of my...colleagues, and you and I have to decide where we can meet tomorrow so that we can have a chat about the people in your life,” he said out loud. “I would prefer somewhere private. Somewhere I won't get arrested for talking to people no one else can see.”
“Hey buddy, you okay? You need me to call someone for you?” Faith peeked around Rayner to see a guy standing there, looking concerned. She watched as Rayner closed his eyes and cursed under his breath. The Good Samaritan was most likely getting ready to call the men in white coats and have his butt hauled off to a psych unit.
Rayner opened his eyes to Faith’s laughter. She watched as he turned to the man behind him and said, “I'm solid, man. Thanks though.”
Then he turned back to Faith, who was now doubled over in laughter.
She tried to get control of herself, which wasn't easy. Faith was one of those people that when stressed or upset and if something happened that made her laugh, she giggled until she was on the verge of hysteria. Peals of laughter burst from her being. She giggled and snorted, her body shaking with it all. She was really close to just bursting into tears, but she fought to get her wits about her, and after a few minutes, she was able to look at Rayner again. He stood before her, his hands stuffed into the front of his jeans, his mouth in a crooked grin. His dark eyes were warm as he watched her. As she looked at him, one word ran through her mind: sexy. He was all raw male, and she felt another type of flush rush through her body—a sexual heat she had never felt before. And that was pretty messed up considering she was almost dead.
Are you finished? he projected, teasing.
She nodded.
So where can I meet you tomorrow?
She thought back to the brief meeting with her parents. They had shown trust in Rayner, which only strengthened her own. And at that point, she didn’t have anyone else to turn to.
“We could go to my apartment,” she said with slight hesitancy. “It's just up the street, and my roommate will be out of town for a few days.”
Rayner nodded. What's the address?
She told him the address, and they agreed he would be there around noon the next day.
She really didn't want him to go. She didn't feel as vulnerable and lost when he was with her. Without anyone to know of her existence, she felt so alone.
She looked into his dark eyes, surprised by their intensity as he watched her. They were warm, she decided. No, scratch that. They were radiating pure male heat. She didn’t have a lot of experience with men, but she recognized that look. She had seen it a time or two. It hadn't been a pleasant feeling to be gawked at like that before, like she was some piece of meat before a rabid dog. But it was different with Rayner. There was respect beyond the lust, and that, she had never witnessed. She found that she couldn't look away; his gaze was so intense.
After a moment, he slipped his sunglasses on, breaking the spell. She looked to the ground, trying to clear her head.
"See you tomorrow, Fai
th," he said quietly.
"Okay," she whispered. She watched him walk away, then turned and made her way to her apartment, feeling more alone than she ever had in her life, and already missing Rayner.
Chapter 13
The next morning, Rayner took his time in the kitchen with Hudson and ate a splendid omelet filled with lots of vegetables, bringing up his “green levels,” as Cohen called them. He also chowed down some bacon, bringing up his cholesterol count. God, he loved bacon. He figured he'd hit the gym and try to erase the bacon damage.
After breakfast, he met Cohen and Hudson in the gym that was located on the second floor in the Phoenix silo. There were two treadmills, a Stairmaster, and a bunch of free weights. Today they would skip the machinery and head for the blue wrestling pads. They had trained in every martial art around, and were also terribly proficient in handling guns and knives. Today, they were sticking to keeping up on their martial arts training.
Hudson was a magnificent killer, if there was such a thing. The guy could bring death with his hands or just about any instrument. Rayner was waiting for the day when Hudson gave a death blow with something like a toothbrush.
So, yeah, you didn't fuck with the guy. But he was cool to spar with because Rayner knew he would always learn something.
Cohen was a proficient killer, but an equal match with Rayner. After getting his ass beaten and his neck almost snapped by Hudson, grappling with Cohen was a nice equalizer.
All three were heaving and sweating when Hudson's phone went off. The ringtone was Rod Stewart's “Do Ya Think I'm Sexy,” which Talin had installed as a joke. What was even funnier was that Talin had done some techie voodoo and made it so Hudson couldn't get the song off his phone. Needless to say, Hudson cursed violently every time his phone rang. Rayner was waiting for the day when Hudson had enough and crushed the thing with his bare hands.
"I'm going to kill that son of a bitch," Hudson muttered as he grabbed his phone from the small table. "What's up, Noah?” he said.
Hudson stood with his back to Cohen and Rayner, who were both splayed out on the blue wrestling mats still trying to catch their breath.
Rayner watched as Hudson nodded and heard the uh-huh's at the appropriate places. Remembering what Chevey had said about Faith, he smiled thinking about the little red-headed hell raiser. She was something else. He was curious about the legend, The Woman With Fire for Hair. Maybe he would have to do a little research on the Internet to see what that was about.
Then the muscles under Hudson’s black tank top tightened.
"Fuck," Hudson said. Whatever it was it obviously wasn't good.
"Okay. We'll look for the reports and pictures. Yeah. Okay. Thanks, man." Hudson hit the OFF button, threw the phone back on the small table, and turned to Cohen and Rayner.
"What happened?" Rayner asked.
"They found the body of one of the girls we think was taken by the Colonist."
Rayner felt his blood turn to ice, dread washing through him. His chest got tight, and he felt like he might suffocate. Could someone suffocate from bad news? Please, please don't let it be Faith, he prayed to whomever might be listening.
"Who?" He asked through a closed throat.
"Not sure. I didn't get a name. Noah's having Talin hack the police again to get us the report and crime scene photos. Hopefully it will lead to something for us."
Rayner felt like he couldn't move. He shut his eyes and tried to calm the panic and dread that welled up in him and the breakfast that was threatening to make a second appearance for the day. It couldn't be Faith. He was supposed to meet her in just a couple of hours, and he was looking forward to it. No, please, not Faith.
He felt terrible praying that someone else had died. That certainly wasn't right. He didn't want to wish death on anyone, or the devastation that it left behind on the survivors. But the pain that ripped through him when he thought of Faith being dead not only surprised him, but also let him know that he had grown to care about her. Sure, he had been with human women and females of SR44. But he had never been emotionally invested in them. It was sex. Period. Now he was scared, concerned, and hoping like hell someone else was dead.
Man, this was messed up.
Of course, beginning to care about Faith was a monumental mistake. First, chances were pretty good she was going to die anyway. Second, even if there was some way to get her back into her body, he couldn't allow himself to care about a female or he would never get home. He couldn't lose his SR44 form.
To make sure the Warriors stayed focused on their mission on Earth, it had been programmed into their human bodies that if they were to experience the ultimate pleasure of an SR44 male, which was making love to a woman he loved, they would lose their SR44 forms and begin aging as a human would. He would have to kiss his world goodbye, and that he wasn't ready to do.
Besides, it was so much safer if Faith didn't know about his species. Safer for the both of them.
It was odd to feel so many different feelings coursing through him in such a short period of time, especially since he really hadn't felt anything but the desire to work in what seemed like forever. Just a guy putting one foot in front of the other, as if he were a man in the desert who had been trudging along looking for his well of water for a very, very long time.
He took a deep breath and hoped it would clear his head. It didn't. Maybe a shower would.
"When are the reports supposed to be in?" he asked.
"Probably an hour or two."
He opened his eyes and saw Cohen staring at him. "You okay, man? You look a little pale."
No, he wasn't okay, but no sense letting anyone onto them. He wasn't about to answer the questions that would pop up. "Yeah, I'm good."
Cohen nodded and Rayner got up.
"I got a meeting in Phoenix in a while. Hitting the shower and then heading out."
Chapter 14
Faith had spent most of the night pacing around her apartment. She was bored and decided to do a little exploring of her apartment building. No one could see her, right? She could move through walls and doors, right? A small smile crept on her face, and a surge of adrenaline from the sheer knowledge that she was about to do something very, very wrong coursed through her. She figured she might as well take advantage of her situation and do something that she would never be able to do otherwise.
An hour later, she was back in her apartment, disappointed, having found her neighbors terribly boring. Of course, most were asleep. Mrs. Makowski had fallen asleep in front of the T.V. with an empty bottle of bourbon on the table next to her. Justin down the hall slept naked, and she had seen far more than she had wanted. She wondered if she would ever be able to look at him again with a straight face. The Henderson’s had just had twins, and Mrs. Henderson was up nursing her babies, cooing at them and looking like a happy mom.
Otherwise, her apartment complex was pretty quiet.
Her thoughts turned to Rayner. She found herself excited to see him the next day and wished time would hurry and pass.
She smiled as she remembered the heat of his gaze. It was obvious he was attracted to her. She was surprised at the level of comfort she felt with him, like it was natural to be with him. There wasn’t any uneasiness that could sometimes come up between strangers.
He had said he could help her get back to her body. Wouldn’t that be beyond awesome. Maybe if she could get back into her body she could get out of that horrible cell. She allowed herself a small fantasy of Rayner coming to her rescue. The huge warrior rescuing the damsel in distress, and then they went on to live happily ever after.
Whoa.
Where had that thought come from? She rarely thought beyond the next twenty-four hours, and here she was thinking happily ever after with a guy she barely knew?
It must be because he was so good looking. The attraction went both ways. She sighed and looked out the window again. Yes, Rayner was nice on the eyes, but he was also kind. The thought of seeing him again the next afternoon m
ade her feel happy, and she once again wished the hands on the clock would move a little faster.
Chapter 15
The relief that washed through Rayner when he saw Faith standing in front of her apartment building almost brought him to his knees. His heart swelled with gratitude.
She was still alive.
She smiled as he approached, and he wanted to drag her into his chest and squeeze her with ferocity. She was alive. Fucking beautiful.
The apartment building was one of the older ones in downtown, but still in good shape. The owner had kept it up, and Rayner thought it looked as though it had recently been painted the color of sand. It stood five stories tall, and the sun reflected off the windows almost blinding him.
After hello's were exchanged, Faith explained that he would obviously need a key to get into her apartment. She would ghost through the door, but she didn't have the ability to open it.
“My apartment's on the third floor,” she said. “If you take the stairs and stop at the fire extinguisher on the second floor, you'll find a key behind it. That's where my roommate and I have our emergency key. Apartment 310.” And then he watched as she floated through the vestibule door.
He found the door to the stairs and took them two at a time. He couldn't stop smiling. She was alive and he got to spend more time with her. He honestly couldn't think of anything that would be better, except maybe to go home to SR44.
When he reached the second floor landing, he saw the fire extinguisher, reached behind it, and there was the key. He made his way up to the third floor.
