Rogue
Book 2 in the Creatus Series
Coming Christmas 2013
Chapter One
“You want me to do what?” Vic threw up her hands, turning her back on the man she’d once loved. Staring out the window that overlooked Boston Harbor, she tried to comprehend how he could ask her to do such a thing. “You’re kidding, right? I said I was sorry. I told you I wouldn’t bother you or Kristina.” Knowing he wasn’t kidding, she walked back to his desk and plopped down in the chair.
A burst of air popped out of Derrick’s mouth as if she’d said or done something funny. There was nothing humorous about this situation. “Vic…” He sighed. “We don’t have a choice.”
“What does Mike have to say about this?” she asked. “I bet your brother wouldn’t agree.”
Derrick shook his head. “Of course he doesn’t agree, but when has Michael ever agreed with me? He’d be happy to take care of this issue. The last thing he wants is for you to be anywhere near Reece Buckley.”
“And yet, you want me to fall for him, as if that’s even possible.”
“It’s possible. You seem to forget that my mother and wife are human. My mother reciprocated when my father fell, and Kristina fell for me with only a kiss. It’s clear we have more in common with humans than we thought.”
Vic jumped up from her seat again. Hearing about Derrick falling for a human wasn’t something she liked to think about. All the nights they’d spent in each other’s arms, all the deep discussions they’d had, and they’d never fallen for each other. If it couldn’t happen with Derrick, then it certainly wasn’t going to happen with a human man. “He’s human. How could I fall for a man who’s weaker than I am, a man who wouldn’t be able to protect me if the need arose?”
Derrick laughed full and deep this time. “As if you need protecting. You beat the crap out of my brother and then went and took Reece out.”
“Yeah, well. Michael wasn’t fighting back; he’d only defended himself, and Reece was already on the ground.”
Derrick got up from behind his desk and crossed the room to stand in front of her. Her body heated as he got closer. Even though she knew they were over, that after he’d fallen for another woman he’d never fall for another one again, she still found it hard to move on with her life. She didn’t wish any danger to befall Kristina, but she couldn’t help but wonder what would occur if something did happen to her. If their histories were wrong about humans being able to fall for creatus, then maybe a creatus could fall more than once in a lifetime.
Kristina was still in danger. The rogue—she couldn’t bring herself to believe that Jonas was capable of all the things he’d been accused of, so she’d continued to refer to the culprit as the rogue—was still after Kristina. She’d known Jonas almost her entire life. She’d even thought that maybe he was the One at one point. They certainly had made a good go at it. The night she’d spent with him had been powerful. Of course, she’d been trying to fall, trying to get Derrick out of her head.
Derrick rested his hand on her shoulder, and it almost burnt her skin, even through her clothes. “He saw you. He saw Michael. And then you threw him across the room, again reinforcing your abilities.” Derrick shook his head. “Why did you do that? We might have been able to talk him out of believing that we’re different.”
“Why did I—you started this, Derrick. The reason Reece even started this investigation was because you felt compelled to save a human. Michael had been trying to clean up your mess. We all were.” She stepped out from under his hand. “Now you want me to fall for a mere human?”
“That mere human put up a fight against Michael. Michael is one of the strongest creatus on the planet. We both are. No one denies that. No one understands why being half-human makes Michael and me stronger than the average creatus, but we are. So how do you explain that a mere human put up a fight?”
Vic shrugged. She really didn’t care. No way was she going to get romantic with a human. No matter how good he looked. No matter what he did to her insides every time she stepped within ten feet of him. She hated humans, and she was starting to hate half-humans like Derrick, Michael, and Jonas too. For that matter, she was starting to hate all men. “Mike probably wasn’t trying to hurt him,” she said. “He just wanted the evidence in Reece’s briefcase. Again, evidence you provided the government of our existence. For four thousand years we’ve managed to stay hidden, but you go and do a swan dive off the Tobin Bridge and bring some division of the National Security Council down on us.”
“My saving Kristina isn’t what made the Feds aware of us. They’ve been tracking supernatural events since 1947. You can blame that on our parents and grandparents for trying to be superheroes and save the world.”
Vic laughed without humor. “Yeah, well… You’re still at fault more than I am. Why don’t you see if you can get him to fall for you?” She raised an eyebrow at him. “Or, you kill him.”
“Is that what you want, Victoria? You want me to approve the assassination of an innocent human?” Derrick asked.
She sighed and dropped her head into her hands. “No.”
Derrick sat down beside her. “Vic, Michael would take him out without a second thought. I love my brother, but even though we have a human mother, he treats humans as if they are a subspecies. As though their lives mean nothing. And some of Reece’s comments haven’t helped the matter. I know my brother can be cold hearted, but as you said, he hadn’t hurt him in that alley. Now all of the sudden he’s willing to kill him.”
Vic whipped her head up. “What do you mean? What comments?”
“Reece keeps asking about you. Every time Michael or I take a security watch, he asks questions about you.”
“Me? What type of questions.”
Derrick sighed again. “Victoria, honestly, are you trying to tell me you don’t see the man is enamored with you?”
She shook her head, even though she had noticed. Never had a man gazed at her the way Reece had. It didn’t matter. She didn’t want anything to do with him. Him or any man for that matter, human or creatus.
“I asked him,” Derrick continued, “When I realized we couldn’t change his mind on what he saw, what he believes we are, I asked him why he didn’t fight you.” Derrick smiled as he nudged her chin up. “You know what he said?”
Vic gulped, shaking her head again, unable to find her voice for some reason. She didn’t want to know what he said.
“He said you were the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He admitted that he did throw a chair in your direction, but he knew he wouldn’t hit you. And there was no way he could ever hit a goddess.”
Vic couldn’t help but laugh. “I bet you rolled with laughter at that comment, huh, Derrick?”
“Victoria, why do you do that to yourself? You know my falling for Kristina had nothing to do with you. You know you are one of the best-looking women on this planet. Reece even made a comment that you looked like a modern-day Wonder Woman.”
“What the hell? Are you guys best friends now?” she asked.
Derrick shrugged. “He’s a nice guy. What else is there to do when I have to take four hours out of my day to sit with him? We play cards and talk.”
“I just don’t understand why we can’t leave him handcuffed to the bed,” she said.
“Because it’s inhumane, and even if we aren’t human, we are not mindless cold-blooded beings, as some would believe.”
“We have him locked up in the psyche ward. The lock was probably broken when he escaped the first time.”
“The lock wasn’t broken, and Michael admitted that Reece put up a decent fight. Something he hadn’t been prepared for. If being half-human makes Michael and me twice as strong as most creatus, think about what having any creatus blood, even hundreds of years ago, would mean to humans.”
Vic narrowed her eyes. “What are you saying, Derrick?”
“I think there’s a reason some humans are ridiculously stronger than other humans. Why some can
deadlift more weight than other humans, why some are Olympians. I think there were more interracial relationships than we knew of in the past. I think Reece Buckley has creatus blood running through his veins.”
A Note From the Author
I hope you enjoyed the first book in the Creatus Series. If you did, please leave a review for other readers, so they’ll know if it’s a story that they too would like to invest their time.
Though all of my stories have a common thread—romance, mystery, and suspense—not all of my novels are supernatural. My first five books, the Southern Suspense Series, are romantic-suspense whodunits. They are all stand-alone novels; however, I do link each of my stories with a little surprise. If you choose to read my other stories while you are waiting for book two in the Creatus Series, here is the order I’d recommend .
She Belongs to Me
Split Decisions
Land of the Noonday Sun
Entangled Dreams
When Noonday Ends
I also have two mini-mysteries with a ghostly paranormal edge that I offer free on all book websites. However, sometimes the websites pull the free offer, so always check prices before downloading.
The Pit Stop
The Depot
The Library (Coming Soon)
I love talking about all things books, so please connect with me via one of the links below.
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads
Acknowledgements
My journey as a writer has been a long one. Though my first book only took two years to write and publish, the story took twenty-five years to compile, as life tends to get in the way of dreams. But since then I’ve met an amazing group of readers and authors I now call friends. Without their support and encouragement, the last eighteen months wouldn’t have been possible. There is no way to name them all, but there are three women who have been my constant cheer squad from the beginning: Jaime Rush, Bernadette Marie, and MJ Kane. These three women have suffered through my first drafts and listened to my whining and crying over technological issues and just plain life. Thank you, ladies. Not only are you all amazing authors, you are wonderful friends. I’d also like to thank my friend Terry Trahan for helping me ferret out some of those words we all miss. No book is perfect, but with her help, I hope we’ve given you a pleasurable reading experience.
Of course if it wasn’t for my wonderful, supportive husband of twenty-three years, my writing would not be possible. He truly made me believe in a happily-ever-after. Without my husband and two wonderful sons, there would be no reason to write.
And lastly a thank you to my biggest fan—my youngest son—he has stood by me longer than any other person, championing me constantly through every rough turn in the road. He is also the creator of the Creatus seal and title, which I hope will someday be recognized across the book community.
I love you all.
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