Every superhero had a name, and so did the superhero’s archenemy. The press could make up any name they wanted. But they’d probably come up with something ridiculous like ‘Count’. Maybe leaking ‘creatus’ to the press would be the way to go. Creatus would know with certainty after this attack, and they’d be angry. The seal meant unity, but also anonymity, and now humans would once again question the existence of beings who were smarter and stronger, and they’d be afraid, as they should be.
After tonight, Rogue would work well within the family, as it was the one crime the family wouldn’t tolerate. The name was starting to sound tolerable. A mischievously playful person, one who lives apart from the rest of the group—naughty. The depiction was sounding better all the time. Uncontrolled, though… never!
The human woman walked down to the river a while ago and had been just looking out as if in a daze. Her hair was fair, as was her skin. Weak, pathetic, hardly even worth the effort, but it was fun when they knew a predator was stalking them. Like watching a rabbit attempt to evade a cougar, only a rabbit had more skills than a human did.
Just when the prey thought they might escape was the time for the real attack. The lightning strike they didn’t see coming, when their breath whooshed out of their body at the suddenness. How they tried to comprehend that their feet were on the ground and now they were on the rooftop, the predator staring down at them.
That was the best part.
Even better, the attack would enrage Derrick.
Chapter Twenty-one
Kris stares at the calm water of the harbor. It is so peaceful that she wonders how she can feel fear. But she does, wondering why Derrick left her, who he went to see. She remembers the detective’s eyes, cold and dark, lifeless, staring up at her. Death is always near, taunting her. The rogue is coming, she knows. His breaths are louder as he approaches. To finish what the thief attempted when she was eight. She screams Derrick’s name, but he doesn’t answer. Why? she wonders. He said he’d protect her, but now she’s running for her life. Not knowing who or what is chasing her, wondering if she can trust anyone, she tries to find her assailant. She hears a crack and whips her head around, seeing nothing.
Arms latch around her, restraining her. She screams as her feet leave the grassy knoll below, knowing he has her, but she can’t see him.
“It’s okay. I have you. It’s Derrick.” His words broke through her nightmare.
“The rogue…” Her voice sounded ragged even to her. “He… he… had me. He pulled me off the ground… He—”
“I won’t let anyone touch you, Kristina,” he promised, pulling her closer. He ran his fingers over her forehead attempting to soothe her.
Kris let out another breath and rested her head on Derrick’s chest. It felt so good, but the dream had been so real. She’d felt the attack, saw the solid earth disappear from beneath her as her body had been ripped from the ground.
Derrick’s phone buzzed on the nightstand. He turned to it and looked at the number. “It’s Michael. If he’s calling at two a.m., there has to be a reason. Maybe he caught the rogue.”
Kris nodded at the hopeful look in his eyes. She’d never been so scared. Even after her mother’s attack and the nightly bad dreams, a part of her assumed it wouldn’t happen twice, but this thing was marking her for death. As a payback for something Derrick had done as overseer, he’d explained when they came home after the police station. He’d wanted to move away, but she had refused. They couldn’t leave permanently, and if the rogue wanted her, he’d track them down, she was certain. And who knows how many innocent people he’d kill while they hid somewhere. How could Derrick expect her to sit around while innocent people were slaughtered? No, she’d told him. She agreed with Michael; she’d become bait.
Derrick answered the phone and then sat up quickly. “Where?” He listened for a second and then hung up. Derrick turned to her, his eyes grave.
Kris shook her head, knowing it was something awful. News that would hurt her again based on his expression. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.
He picked up her hands and held them. “Beth is in the hospital.”
She gasped, throwing her hand over her mouth, tears seeping down her cheeks as if someone had turned on a spigot. “The rogue?” Kris pushed out the words, praying they weren’t true. But if Beth had been hurt any other way, they wouldn’t be receiving the news from Derrick’s brother. If Beth had been in a car accident, her mother would have called her—eventually. Beth’s mother had never liked Kris, so she wouldn’t be first on the list, she knew.
Derrick nodded, pulling her into his embrace. “Michael thinks so. The police aren’t releasing any information, but his source gave him enough to go on.”
“But… she’s alive?” she mumbled against his chest.
“Yes, but she’s in ICU. I doubt they’ll let you see her. But as a doctor, I can get to her. Her parents won’t know I’m not just another doctor checking on her. The nursing staff won’t question me; I’ve visited patients there.” Derrick peered down at her. “Do you want to come with me? Or, I could get my parents to come and stay with you.”
Kris’ eyes darted up at him in response. “Of course! Even if they won’t let me see Beth, I want to be there.”
He pulled her off the bed and to her feet. “I’m sorry—”
“Stop it!” she shrieked. “This has nothing to do with us.” She shook her head as she walked into his walk-in closet to grab clothes. “This is… that rogue, as you call that thing. That animal.” Kris pulled her hands to her head and released more sobs. “Beth’s so little. So sweet.” Derrick wrapped his arms around her without a word, comforting her with just his touch. She leaned against him. “How could anyone hurt Beth?”
“I don’t know,” he said, turning her in his arms. “But we’ll find out. This stops now. I swear to you—” He sucked in a breath. “I won’t let this continue. And whoever’s responsible… will pay.”
When Kris entered the doors of the emergency room, only a few people sat in the black vinyl chairs in the waiting area. As predicted, they wouldn’t let her see Beth, since she wasn’t family. Derrick had dropped her off at the ER entrance so she could walk in by herself, and he’d taken the rear entrance, keeping in touch with her via text messages.
Now, she sat anxiously, awaiting any word. The room was surprisingly quiet other than a few moans and groans here and there, reminders to the nurses and receptionists that the people were in pain, she imagined, since no one seemed to be in a hurry to attend to the new arrivals.
A few minutes after she sat down, the locked double doors to the ER opened, and Derrick, wearing a white jacket over his khakis and oxford, leaned his head through the doorway. “Ms. Heskin?” he called without making eye contact with her.
Truly surprised, since he hadn’t texted her he was coming to get her, Kris jumped up. Maybe that’s why he hadn’t warned her. “That’s me!” She tossed a glimpse at the receptionist’s desk, but they didn’t seem to question the fact that a doctor was calling her to the secured area. Kris ran across the gleaming-white floor of the emergency room toward Derrick while he held the door.
“Right this way, Ms. Heskin.” He placed his hand on the small of her back and escorted her along the corridor, stopping before he turned to walk them into a room. He lowered his head to speak, without looking as if he knew her. “She’s going to be okay, I swear. But she looks really bad. Are you sure you want to see her?”
Kris gulped, restraining her tears. “Yes. Please.”
“Okay… but try not to upset her. If she wakes up and sees you crying, it will only make it worse for her.”
She bobbed her head. That made sense. She didn’t know how she could retain the tears, but she would. For Beth, she’d be strong.
Kris walked inside the room quietly, doing her best to hold her audible tears as she took in her surroundings. Where were Beth’s parents? Jason? Why weren’t they here holding her hand? Speaking to her,
telling her she’d be all right. Kris stepped to the hospital bed, looking up at the monitors to the left of Beth and the IV fluids to her right. Was that a normal beep? she wondered. Would she know if she was in danger? Derrick slid up beside Kris as she placed her hand over Beth’s, and she remembered that as a doctor he would know if anything wasn’t normal. But would he tell her? He’d sworn that she’d be okay, so Kris had to have faith that he wouldn’t say it if it weren’t true. He just wouldn’t have said anything.
She retained the audible cries that threatened to burst from her throat, but she couldn’t impede the stream of tears sliding down her cheek. Beth had looked so lovely in her dress today. Her strawberry-blond curls had bounced beautifully around her shoulders, and Kris had told her she should allow plenty of tendrils on her wedding day. Beth had looked like a princess and had even tried on some tiaras, but in the end decided to go with a stunning white and lace headdress with rhinestones that didn’t look as if she was pretending to be royalty.
Now Beth’s light peach-colored skin was red with splotches of yellow and blue forming around her eyes and cheeks. Kris choked back the tears, imagining what that beast had done to her.
“It was a message, Kristina,” Derrick whispered in her ear. “He could have killed her, but he wanted us to see her.”
Kris turned to him. “How do you know it was the rogue? Maybe it was a mugger.”
Derrick shook his head. “The 911 call came from her cell phone. There were no words, just the call. The police triangulated the position of the call. She was on a rooftop. But worse… He used our kind’s insignia. Before phones, when creatus needed to meet, they’d use a courier to deliver a note card with a red wax seal on the front. Nothing else, but it told family members that there was an emergency. The meeting had always been held in the same place at the same time, so creatus knew to show up that night. Obviously, we don’t need to resort to those methods nowadays, but it’s always something we’ve kept from our heritage, reminding us how we used to have to hide, and that our anonymity was our greatest strength.” Derrick dropped his head and sighed. “Since he wasn’t eliciting a response from the media, I guess he’s decided to leave a calling card. Sick S.O.B. This isn’t about food or a thrill; he’s trying to let humans know we exist.”
Chapter Twenty-two
Reece Buckley leaned forward, resting his chin on his fist as he examined the video feed from the hospital. Catching a glimpse of his own image on the monitor, he flinched; he still hadn’t adapted to the short spiky cut. But, high and tight, they’d said, just like when he was a SEAL. He’d been UC for so long in Miami, he’d gotten used to wearing it long. But that’s why the government wanted him, he imagined. He cleaned up well. He could go undercover as a druggie or infiltrate the Russian mafia if need be. With his nonspecific features and medium skin tone, he’d been able to pass for almost any nationality, and it didn’t hurt that as an army brat he was able to speak several languages. The government agency had solicited him; he’d been content traveling back and forth from Miami to South America. DEA had sent him south numerous times to bust a newbie drug cartel before they got out of control like their counterparts.
This was Reece’s first classified investigation, which he was certain they’d sent him on because he was a rookie in their eyes. A simple Google search by a homicide detective had attracted his office’s attention, but now Murphy O’Brian was dead. The scene on the disc was interesting enough to keep Reece investigating, but certainly not worthy of the detective’s execution. The detective hadn’t done anything but mouth off to a few other detectives that some agent had walked in and taken his evidence. But as always, Reece’s orders were to do his job, so he didn’t question his superiors’ motives. From now on, though, Reece decided he’d keep all the information he gathered on his person and to himself before forwarding it to his boss. He wanted more time to interview a potential witness before they needed silencing.
When Reece had been parked outside Kristina Heskin’s apartment earlier, waiting for her to come home, her boyfriend had looked in his direction. The film on the government-issue vehicle’s windshield was similar to the advertisements on busses; only, the outside image was clear instead of having a print on it. Reece loved the anonymity it gave him. But for some reason, he would swear that the man had looked him dead in the eyes. The same man who’d jumped off a hundred and thirty-five foot bridge and pulled up the girl who’d jumped.
Reece examined the image on his phone. Just a red wax seal with a ‘C’ stamped into the middle, but it meant something. Why use a relic as a calling card? When his boss indicated that the stories might be connected, Reece didn’t see it, but then the same man he’d been tracking had shown up.
“Who are you Derrick Ashton? Or rather, what are you?”
Chapter Twenty-three
“So why can’t I be a part of the meeting?” Kristina asked again from the passenger seat.
Derrick took his eyes off the highway and smiled at her pout, her arms crossed over her chest, her lip jutting out a fraction. He resisted smiling, knowing it would only irritate her more than she already was. “It’s not that I mind, but there’s a very good reason other than the others just feeling uncomfortable, which I tried to explain to you earlier.”
Kristina cocked her head and shrugged her shoulders as if to tell him she didn’t care what the others thought.
Derrick decided to continue with the rational reason why. “If authorities discover us, we can escape, you cannot. We—okay, I’d rather you not ever be put in a position where you would have to lie more than you already have to.”
She released a sigh as if she understood, but still didn’t buy it. “So, I just sit around and wait while you discuss using me as bait?”
He squeezed his fingers around the steering wheel. He should have never told her that Michael wanted to draw the rogue out by leaving her unattended. “We are not using you as bait, Kristina,” he said with finality. “Besides,” he continued, not giving her an opportunity to argue, “my mother has never been involved. She understands that she isn’t a superhero.”
A burst of laughter shot out of Kristina’s mouth. “A superhero? Is that what you are Derrick?”
At that remark, he found himself pouting slightly. There wasn’t a UFC fighter, boxer, or creatus that could take him out with their bare hands, but somehow, this tiny woman could bring him to his knees. “Some would say so,” he offered. “I don’t go around trying to act like one, and I may not be able to fly, but I can leap tall buildings with a single bound.”
Kristina leaned over the center console, draping her arm around his waist and resting her head on his shoulder. “You’re my superhero, Derrick. Always have been.”
Pacified, he kissed the top of her head, breathing in the raspberry scent, which he’d discovered was the shampoo she used. She could also lift him up faster than anyone else could.
After pulling onto his parents’ driveway, he drove around to the rear of the house this time. He threw the gear in park and jumped out, anxious to get the day over with and get home.
Kristina jumped down when he opened the door and marched off toward the house without a glance backward. She was such a firecracker. Spunk, as he’d always known, the girl had spunk.
He heard his mother greet Kristina when she walked into the kitchen, and then the kiss she’d certainly placed on her cheek. “Don’t forget they can hear us, sweetheart,” his mother chirped, but if you want to go for a walk, we can go down to the lake, out of earshot. I’d love some girl time.”
“I’d love that too,” Kristina said. “And I love you, Derrick, but I’m going to go find out all I can about you.”
Derrick shook his head and walked off toward the barn, smiling, listening as his two favorite women walked out the front door chattering to each other. He was thrilled they were getting along so well, even if they planned to talk about him. He stopped in his tracks. No. They couldn’t go off on their own, he realized. He took off in a spr
int and leaped the house, landing in front of them.
His mother threw her hand over her heart. “Oh, my word, Derrick. You scared the—I’m not used to you showing off, and you know better than that,” she lectured.
“I’m sorry. I really am. And I swear you can talk about me all you want. I promise I won’t listen, but you can’t walk to the lake by yourselves.”
“Why on earth not?” Sabrina retorted, folding her arms over her chest in defiance. His mother wasn’t the type of woman you told what to do, he knew.
“The rogue was here, Mom. At the lake when Kristina and I went for a paddle. He’d like nothing better than to take the two most important people in my life away from me, I’m sure.”
“Oh…” his mother said, and Derrick exhaled in relief, thankful that she didn’t plan to argue with him. Sabrina focused on Kristina and nodded. “He’s got a point, sweetheart. We’ll walk down together later, the four of us.”
“Okay, Derrick,” Kristina conceded. “But I’m taking a sign language course, and then I’m going to teach your mother.”
Derrick leaned in and kissed his mother on the cheek and Kristina on the lips. “Works for me.” He took off in a hurry, listening as his mother locked up the house. He’d make a conscious effort to tune them out, except of course if they were in danger. But he doubted the rogue would come anywhere near the house. Unless he or she was already in the barn waiting.
Michael intercepted Derrick at the door. “Good call on Mom. I’d hate to think she was in danger just because she was next to Kristina.”
Derrick crossed his arms, tucking his fists beneath his arms, resisting the urge to punch his brother. Michael was really getting on his last nerve. “So, you couldn’t care less what happens to my future wife as long as Mom is okay?”
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