Marius (Luna Lodge, #4)

by Madison Stevens

  In a comfortable silence, they passed the time reading over the material. They were getting to the end of things. Doctor Fisher had left some boxes, and as long a shot as it might be, it was the last chance.

  “Son of a bitch,” Rem said and tossed the papers to the floor. “There’s got to be something we’re missing.”

  She nodded. They had been feeling that way the whole time. Like it was just out of their grasp but shouldn’t be. The influencing source appeared to be in the water and not the food, so the initial contamination had to be something near the water. She doubted it was in the air. That would be too sensitive to wind and such.

  Try as she might, she couldn't pinpoint the source. Without a better idea of what the poison might be, she wouldn't be able to identify it, especially since she was lacking some advanced qualitative analysis equipment, and they didn’t have time to wait on results from external labs. If she had even an inkling of the exact contaminant, she could easily test directly for that for confirmation.

  The door shot open, and she jumped as it banged against the wall. Varius stood, pale and visibly shaken.

  “It’s Rufus,” he said.

  She didn’t need any more than that. Rachel raced to the door. She could hear heavy feet behind her and knew the other men were close.

  Not pausing, she burst through the doors and into the room.

  The other men watched from their beds. The pale Rufus appeared to be hanging on by just a thread, sweat soaking his gown. A nurse, who had come highly recommended by the hospital, had been with them for just a day. Her pinched, hard demeanor didn’t seem out of place for some of the nurses she’d met from the hospital, but the air about her had changed from this morning.

  The nurse frowned at the intrusion, sending a chill down Rachel’s spine. There were spies everywhere, and she may have just let one right into her house. The hybrids had been betrayed before, and though she needed the help, they still needed to be careful. They'd done a quick background check, but it might have not been enough.

  The tall, thin raven-haired woman stared Rachel down as if she might do something at any moment but stopped when the other hybrids stepped in.

  “Doctor Miller,” she said and glanced around nervously. “I was just coming to get you.”

  Rachel shoved past her to Rufus, who lay shivering on the bed.

  “How long has he been like this?” she ground out.

  The nurse waved a hand as if it were unimportant. “Ten minutes tops.”

  “An hour,” one of the other patients in the room said and glared at the nurse. “And she said it was the meds doing it. She changed some of the bags the other nurse had set up earlier.”

  “What meds?” Rachel said and paled.

  The women launched herself toward the door but stopped when Marius blocked the way. His eyes briefly glowed yellow. Slowly, the nurse backed up and withdrew a syringe of fluid.

  “Back up!” she screeched at all the men.

  Slowly, they surrounded her. Those who could make it out of beds, pushed themselves up to help.

  The woman jerked her head about, watching the hybrids, leaving Rachel open. She had to do something. What she really needed was to find out what was in that syringe.

  Rachel quietly moved behind the nurse. From the side, she could see Marius motioning her to move away. She shook her head and stepped forward again. In one quick move, she grabbed the woman's hand with her own.

  The woman struggled and tried to lunge forward, but Rachel held firm.

  “Give it up,” Rachel shouted. “What do you think is going to happen? You’re outnumbered, and these aren't exactly normal men.”

  The woman glanced around the room and frowned. Nowhere to run, her arms went lax, and she looked down.

  Rachel let out a sigh. She hadn’t really known what the hell she was getting into but certainly nothing like this. She pictured stepping in and doing some sort of fancy move that would knock the nurse out. Unfortunately, Rachel had no idea how that fancy move would actually happen given she knew absolutely nothing about fighting.

  Faster than Rachel thought possible, the nurse lunged to her left and shook her arm free of the hold. The woman grabbed onto Rachel's neck and used the momentum to push her headfirst into the wall. Rachel crashed forward into the hard wall, the sound echoing in her head.

  “No,” Marius roared as she slipped into unconsciousness.

  His heart slammed in his chest as he watched her hit the floor and remain motionless. Marius stepped forward but stopped when the nurse held up the syringe.

  “Just back up,” she said. Her eyes were wild, and she kept glancing around the room. Between the men in the bed and themselves, there were eight hybrids, far too many for her to take on, even if she were to take Rachel hostage.

  His gut twisted at the thought, and he knew that they had to get Rachel away. He should have never let her make that move, but there was no stopping her sometimes. It was a feature he both loved and hated.

  “You’ll never get out of here,” Rem said. “You might as well give up.”

  She stared at him for a moment before looking back around the room.

  “Do you work for the Horatius Group?” Marius asked. Anything to get her talking. That wild-eyed look was starting to worry him. She might flip at any moment and pump Rachel full of God knew what.

  The nurse's face scrunched up as she stared at them.

  “She doesn’t seem to understand,” Rem said.

  The nurse turned back to him. Her lust for Rem drifted through the room and nearly made Marius gag. This woman was threatening them but could take the time to feel something like that?

  She seemed to gain some control over herself and glared at Rem.

  “'Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one,’” she said. A satisfied smile settled over her face. “I have not forgotten, Lord,” she shouted. “I’ll not be tempted.”

  Marius narrowed his eyes.

  “I think she’s talking about you,” Varius said to Rem.

  Rem nodded. His face was tight and his mouth pressed to a thin line. “That’s what I’m gathering.”

  The raven-haired nurse looked back down to the men and stared. She stopped shaking, and her wild-eyed look had given way to something more confident. Such self-assurance was almost worse. Before there was a chance she would slip up, but now she was too focused.

  Marius glanced at Rachel, who was still lying on the floor. Her hand moved, and he hoped she would stay down just a little bit longer. If she were to get up now, he didn’t even want to think about what could happen.

  “Let’s just talk about this,” Marius said and held up his hands. “There has to be something you want.”

  The nurse gave him a harsh smile, and he wondered if he really wanted to hear what it was. In the distance he could hear men making movements. Someone had thought to put in the call before it got to this point. Likely Varius, as he tended to be the most controlled.

  The sound of boots picked up in the hall, and her smile fell. Marius kept his attention on her. If there was going to be a chance, he was going to take it.

  His heart hammered in his chest as she raised the syringe and stared at them with pure hatred in her eyes.

  ““There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.””

  Her hand started to drop. There was no time. She’d inject Rachel, and it would be all over. Marius launched himself to the floor, covering her body with his own. If something was going to happen, let it be him that took the injection.

  Within seconds, the nurse was lying across him. He waited for the sting, but it never came.

  “What the fuck?” Rem said from next to him.

  He looked up as Rem laid out the nurse on the ground. The syringe was implanted in her neck.

  Marius turned to the men. “We needed her alive for interrogation.”

  Varius shook his head. “I didn’t t
hink about it,” he said. “I don’t think any of us could have guessed that she’d do herself in.”

  Rachel stirred in Marius’s arms, and he was glad to see the bump to her head wasn’t near as bad as he thought.

  The door to the room slammed open, and unsurprisingly, Titus and Apollo marched in with several men carrying guns.

  “What the hell is going on around here?” Titus asked.

  The men cleared a path around the body.

  “Who killed the nurse?” Apollo glared around the room, pausing at Rachel.

  Marius started to fill them in but stopped when Rem was the first to speak.

  “She killed herself but not before trying to take out Rufus and Rachel,” he said. Several men who had just come in shifted uncomfortably, and Marius felt his blood boil. They had come in assuming it was Rachel and were now disappointed when it wasn’t.

  Rachel pushed herself to a sitting position and gagged.

  Marius placed a hand at her back and rubbed soothingly.

  “Likely a minor concussion,” she said and stood.

  “Should you be standing?” Marius frowned.

  She shook her head and then winced. “No, but I’ve got to get to Rufus, or we’re going to lose him.”

  In the heat of everything, poor Rufus was left to fend for himself. Only a doctor would even think of him first after this mess.

  “Is she dead?” Rachel asked as she stood.

  Rem reached down and placed his fingers on the nurse’s wrist.

  “Yes,” he said plainly.

  She nodded and Marius wondered what she would have done if the woman hadn’t been dead. Maybe she felt the need to make her well because of being a doctor. He knew he certainly didn’t feel that way.

  Rachel looked up to him and held on to his arm. He noticed that she trembled as she held on and wished that he could take away all the horrors of the day.

  “I’ll need help,” she said quietly.

  The men in the room cleared a path as she made her way to Rufus. His rusty red hair stood out among the rest. Rachel sat down on the bed, and Marius wondered if she was shouldering through her own pain to make sure he lived. It made him proud that she was his woman and could keep going, that together they were strong.

  He sat her down next to Rufus and had Zeno help with what she needed. They both had a job to do and as much as he wanted to spend his time watching her, he needed to help provide reports.

  Marius walked over to where Apollo was writing notes and waited for him to say what he needed. Apollo glanced up for a moment and then went back to writing. After a few moments, he stopped and motioned for them to move further across the room.

  “The nurse,” Apollo said. “She had a plan when she got in here.”

  Marius nodded. “Yeah, she also doesn’t seem to have been working with the other new nurse. The men said the dead nurse changed some of the medicine set up before.” She had thought ahead, been ready. It was like they were just waiting for this moment.

  Titus walked over to stand beside them as they watched Rem being led from the room. During all the excitement, it hadn’t even occurred to him that Rem shouldn’t have been there. It was also a surprise that Justus hadn’t taken the opportunity to leave.

  “How did they know we’d seek outside help?” Apollo asked. His gaze kept going to Rachel, and it was pissing Marius off.

  “Maybe for the same reason we’ve had to use the hospital several times,” Marius said gruffly. “We aren’t equipped for much of anything.”

  Titus shook his head. “I will say it’s very suspicious.”

  Marius frowned. But that was the point. It really wasn’t. “So she is in league with someone who just gives it up as soon as they get here? Why wouldn’t she just wait? It would be in their benefit.”

  Apollo shook his head. “Not if she was trying to gain our trust.”

  “This is bullshit,” Marius said, glaring. “You tell me to go for it, but then you sabotage us the first chance you get.”

  “Tell him,” Titus said. His voice was kept low, so the others wouldn’t hear in the general din of treatment and conversation.

  Apollo nodded. “She’s been getting emails.”

  Marius frowned. “So what? We all get emails.”

  Apollo shook his head. “I wouldn’t normally snoop, but since she was staying, we had to be sure. They are from Reverend John.”

  Marius stepped back as if he had been slapped. “The crazy preacher?” Other than harassing Kate at a press conference and leading some protests shortly after Luna Lodge was first established, they hadn't seen much of him.

  Apollo nodded.

  “Is she involved with him?” he asked. His heart hammered in his throat.

  Titus shook his head. “She’s not replied, but the emails are cryptic at times and seem to carry instructions,” he said.

  “For what?”

  Titus shrugged. “As far as we can tell, it’s places to meet, and we know she hasn’t been outside the compound.”

  He breathed a sigh of relief. “So she’s not with them.”

  Apollo shook his head. “Maybe, but it’s suspicious. I think we should put her away until this is all over.”

  Marius shook his head and stood firm. “No fucking way. You want to put her away, you bring me the proof.”

  Apollo glared at him, and Marius wondered what happened to the carefree man he had once been.

  “I’ll be sure to do that,” he ground out.

  The two stared at one another for a bit before Marius turned to Titus.

  “What are we supposed to do for medical care?”

  “There’s the other nurse,” Titus said. “From what you mentioned earlier, it seems like the other nurse is likely not involved. We’ll have someone keep an eye on her, in case she’s our only option.”

  Marius frowned. “Are we done here?”

  Titus sighed and nodded. Marius turned to walk away but stopped when Titus put a hand on his arm.

  “Just keep in mind what we said,” he said.

  Of all people, Marius was being asked to guard the woman he loved. Hell, when Erica and Kate had first arrived at the compound, they'd been all but accused of being pawns of the Horatius Group as well by their future mates Sol and Titus. It seemed like a cruel joke. Would they always distrust the women they were meant to be with?

  Marius yanked his arm away and made his way across the room.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Rachel ignored the pounding in her skull and listened to Rufus's heart and breathing. Both were shallow, but he wasn’t as bad as he had been previously. She wondered if the kick of adrenaline had made a difference.

  She placed a cool hand on his damp forehead.

  “How are you feeling?” she asked.

  “Little better now that the bitch is dead,” he said.

  Rachel glanced to the floor where the dead women lay and nodded. Her heart was conflicted. As a doctor she was supposed to want to save lives, but she could find no pity for the woman. When she turned back to Rufus, he seemed to understand her problem and nodded.

  She was learning more and more that these men weren’t one for words, but it was moments like this that she could break through, and that just might be the answer to her personal connection issues. If she managed enough moments, she could succeed, but it might take a while. Something clanged in the corner, and she jumped. Rufus reached out and patted her hand weakly.

  “Your man will keep you safe,” he said. She glanced back to Marius, who was talking with Apollo and Titus. The way they watched her made her feel as if they thought she was going to run off. For her part, she’d much rather everyone cleared from the room.

  Rachel looked up to Zeno. “They need to be sure to keep that syringe. I’ll have to send it off for results, but it will be helpful.”

  She turned back to Rufus. All the other hybrids seemed to have blond or brown hair. He was the first she’d seen that had red hair.

  Rufus grinned. “It’s t
he hair, isn’t it? Everyone stares.”

  She laughed. She could just bet that everyone did.

  “Is it uncommon?” she asked as she took a few notes in his chart.

  Rufus laughed. “I think everything about us is uncommon.”

  She nodded. That was certainly true.

  Her mind kept wandering back to the events earlier.

  “Rufus,” she started. “How did you feel when things were getting crazy in here?”

  He frowned. It was clear it wasn’t the question he was expecting to be asked.

  “I don’t think I really noticed,” he said and frowned. “I guess I should have though. I was feeling pretty bad before.”

  Rachel leaned back and looked at the man. His cheeks were slightly flushed, and he seemed more alert, but his eyes remained dilated.

  “Shock,” she mumbled.

  “I’m sorry?” Rufus leaned back against his pillow. “I think I should take a nap after all that. I’m starting to get a headache and not feel so well again.”

  “Marius,” she shouted from the bed.

  She stood on her wobbly feat. The other hybrids around her watched as she struggled to make it out of the room. She sighed when he came to stand beside her.

  “I need to get to my lab,” she said and turned to find Apollo standing not far away. “Go stand with Rufus,” she said firmly. He opened his mouth to argue, but she held up a hand. “He’s in shock and is going to start crashing. I don’t have time. I’ve got an idea.”

  Apollo frowned but nodded. The look that Marius and Apollo exchanged was not lost on her.

  In the hall she struggled to stay standing. The blow to her head had been harder than she expected. All this movement was killing her.

  “Just tell me what it is,” Marius said. “I’m faster, and you aren’t well.”

  She nodded. There was no time, and they needed to be quick. She could already hear shouts from the room.

  “It’s on the shelf near the back,” she said. “You’re looking for epinephrine.”

  Marius nodded and raced off. She leaned against the wall, waiting for him. It was going to be a challenge to get the needle in the IV if she didn’t stop shaking, but it had to be done.