Stranger Series Box Set

by Heather C. Myers

  What a dick.

  At least he hadn't made a comment about the two of them being indisposed. Not that he needed to, what with those black eyes as he took the sight of them in. They were sharp and calculating, probably didn't miss any detail, no matter how tiny. She wondered if he read their minds, but then, immediately banished the thought. Depogare was a dick, but he wasn't a mean one. He respected privacy, and most likely didn't want to know what the couple was thinking anyway.

  After he left, Sophie started pulling her clothes on. Her heart started beating faster after the initial embarrassment wore off and she let his words sink in. Jane would be back soon. She smiled as she threw on her t-shirt and quickly ran her fingers through her hair, trying to tidy it up as best she could. Her friend would be back. She and Will were happy together. Things could go back to normal.

  As normal as it was before.

  "You happy?"

  Will's voice broke her out of her thoughts, and she looked over at him. Her lips curled up when she saw him smiling at her. Not a fake, condescending smile. Not even a mischievous one. But a smile that said he was happy because she was happy, no strings attached. It was the kind of smile that made the inside of Sophie's stomach melt to the floor.

  "I am," she said. "Maybe now we can put this whole thing behind us and focus on the future."

  "And the now."

  Sophie's smile deepened. "And the now," she agreed.

  Which caused something to tug out a memory.

  Ethan's offer.

  Now would be the best time to talk to Will about it. They didn't need to discuss it or even resolve it yet. She could just bring it up to let him know, and they could take a few days to figure out what was best for them.

  "Hey," Sophie murmured as she watched Will walk to his closet in search of a shirt. "Can I talk to you about something?"

  Will tilted his head back so he could see her. "You can talk to me about anything, kid," he replied. "You know that."

  She smiled inwardly. She did know that.

  "Do you remember when Ethan held me back in his office the other day to talk to me?" Sophie asked, curling some hair behind her ear. At Will's nod, she continued. "He offered me a job."

  Will furrowed his brow so his forehead wrinkled, and Sophie elaborated. She told him how Ethan wanted her to train other physicals, should there ever be any enrolled in the school. She would continue training with him to get the knowledge and the experience, and she would help recruit for the Ignis Dorm. She would get free housing and food, on top of a biweekly paycheck with benefits. It sounded ... perfect, actually.

  Will listened attentively as he got dressed, and by the time she was finished, he was buckling his belt. "Well?" he asked when she stopped speaking. "What do you think?"

  "What do you mean?" she asked.

  "Come on, kid," he said, pulling his motorcycle jacket over his broad shoulders. "You know. Does that offer sound like something you'd be interested in?"

  Sophie looked down at her toes, clad in brandless Toms knockoffs. "I don't know," she said. "I mean, it's an amazing offer. It just threw me off."

  Will shot her a look as the two headed toward his door. "Threw you off?" he asked doubtfully.

  "Come on, Will," she said as she opened the door. "Don't look at me that way, like you're taking my hesitation personal."

  "Tell me," he said as he locked up his door. "How else do you want me to take it? Ethan offers you a home here, with me, where we can be together and work together. And instead of snapping it up, you're thrown off."

  Before Sophie could respond, they were interrupted.

  "Well, this explains a lot."

  Jason.

  His face paled at the sight of them together, both outside Will’s flat. They weren’t touching, nor was there anything untoward going on between them, but there was an air surrounding the couple that sizzled when they were together. They didn’t need to blatantly state that they were together for people to realize that they were. It was in their chemistry, in the way they looked at each other, in the way the space between them drew them closer together regardless if they were physically touching or not.

  She wondered, for a moment, why he was here in the first place. What did he need to see Will about? He was wearing a collared shirt—dark blue—and jeans. His dusty blond hair was somewhat messy. Before seeing Sophie and Will, his cheeks had been red, as though he had been running. There, in his arm, was a soccer ball.

  Of course.

  He was captain of the Ignis Dorm’s varsity soccer team. Will, being the RH director, would help coordinate Ignis practice and games. Since players weren’t allowed to return to campus yet, Jason was probably practicing on his own. Maybe he wanted Will to practice with him. Will was nothing short of athletic, after all.

  Sophie opened her mouth to start denying it. What, she didn’t know. He hadn’t even technically accused her of anything. Either way, she did not want Jason to think she— Even though that was the reality ... Her face must have reached its boiling point, it was so hot and red. She was more embarrassed than she ever had been before, while Will, on the other hand, was silent and calculating. That made everything worse, of course, because it wasn't as though Will was denying it.

  “What do you want?” Will asked, not impolitely. It came out brusque, as did everything else he said.

  “I wanted to ask if you could help me with my left shot,” he said, Jason’s voice dripping with dry sarcasm. “But I can see that, clearly, you’re busy.”

  Sophie didn’t have to look at Will to know his eyes narrowed at the student. If he had been touching her in any way, his grip on her would have tightened, partly because he was just a protective person, but also because she helped temper his anger just by being next to him.

  "Jason, I—"

  Sophie had no idea why she was speaking. She just didn’t want him to be mad at her. She desperately wanted things to be okay between them. No tension, no awkward silences, no whispering after the other walks by. It was cliché and felt awful, and she knew she deserved it, but she didn’t want Jason to hate her. They didn’t have to be friends—Sophie was smart enough not to expect that—but they could be cordial. They could both move on and handle things as adults did. They could put the past behind them. At least, that was what Sophie hoped could happen between them.

  It didn’t look as though that would happen, however.

  "Sophie, shut up. Honestly, just shut up."

  Sophie’s eyes widened. She didn’t expect that. Not from Jason. He was always easy-going, sweet. Not mean to be mean. He had every right to be upset and hurt by her constant mistakes when it came to him, but she certainly didn’t deserve to be spoken to in that way.

  "Don't talk to her that way," Will growled, stepping in front of Sophie as a way to protect her.

  Sophie felt her insides warm at Will’s defensiveness. She liked that about him. Even though he knew she could handle herself on her own, he was there for her as well.

  "In all honesty, Professor," Jason said with a sneer, "I can talk to her however I feel like." His brown eyes narrowed on her form. She felt her shoulders straightened, and she made sure to look him in the eye. She would not flinch. She would not look away. "You're disgusting, you know that? He's your professor, Sophie. He was entrusted with a position of power and totally took advantage of you. He's been alive for hundreds of years. Just because he looks a couple of years older than us doesn't mean he's the same mentally. The fact that he's into you says a lot more about him than it does about you, but fuck.

  "How dare you. I always knew something weird was going on between the two of you, and while I can't prove it, I know you cheated on me. How dare you come to my room last night trying to apologize for being unfaithful. How dare you treat me like I'm a goddamn fool. And you know what? Maybe I was. I thought I saw something different in you, sometimes real and genuine and vulnerable. Not like the usual girls who go here. But fuck, I was wrong. You're just like everyone else: selfish and inconsi
derate." His eyes looked back at Will. "Good luck with her. I hope she treats you better than she ever treated me."

  “Jason,” Sophie said, taking a step forward. “You’re right. I should have handled this all better. This is my fault. But nothing you say is going to change my mind. I’m happy.”

  “I don’t give a shit,” he said, a look of disgust on his face.. “I don’t want to be near you, let alone be with you again. I just—”

  “You wanted to vent,” Sophie said, suddenly realizing the motive behind his venom. “I get it. You’re hurt. Is there anything else you want to say?”

  Jason looked even more upset at the fact that Sophie was so calm and even understanding about this. He looked like he was going to retaliate, but stopped. His shoulders deflated and his eyes watered. Will, on the other hand, was surprisingly calm. Tense, but calm.

  "I think it's time for you to go," Will said. His voice was gentle, but carried a warning.

  "I was just leaving," Jason snapped.

  Just as he turned around to go, gunfire broke out and glass shattered around them. Will all but tackled Sophie to the floor and yelled something at Jason. It wasn’t clear to Sophie, but it sounded like, "Get down!"

  She could feel Will's heart hammer against her shoulder blade, and she held her breath. AckPec was being attacked.

  8

  The office phone rang, a shrill noise that disturbed the silent room. After pushing papers off the phone so he could check the caller ID, Ethan wasn't surprised to see the blocked number. He wasn't psychic, but he already knew who would be on the other end of the phone when he picked up.

  "General Arbuckle."

  If the general was surprised by the greeting, he didn't show it. "Ethan Curtis," came the general's slow drawl. The general didn't have to raise his voice when speaking in order to commend attention; the power in his tone did that for him.

  "I know you know where our good friend, Miss Cabot is," the general began. Ethan could appreciate that he was straight to the point. "Or at the very least, you know someone who does."

  Ethan leaned back in his chair and put the phone on speaker so he didn't have to press it against his face. He didn't remember the last time he had cleaned the phone, and for whatever reason—perhaps it was speaking to the general—he felt how oily the landline handset was against his skin. Once he hung up the phone, he interlocked his fingers and placed his hands on his stomach. He wouldn't answer Arbuckle's unasked question. If Arbuckle wanted him to talk, Ethan would force him to be direct. It was what the general was known for, and it was what Ethan expected.

  "I know you know I'm not a bad person, Dean Curtis," Arbuckle continued, just as Ethan knew he would. "I don't choose violence for violence's sake, but I will use force if I deem it necessary. I wouldn't want you or your academy to get caught in the crosshairs."

  "Why is Miss Cabot so important to you, General?" Ethan asked. "She's nothing more than an eighteen year old girl."

  "We both know she's more than that, and I'm insulted you would think I'd believe that. Jane Cabot is the most powerful peculiar we know of. He friend, Sophie Harper, is second only to her. Females carry the line, you see? Despite the fact that your professor and Michael are similar in power and ability as their female counterparts, the males cannot reproduce. They cannot carry children. I need them both—but for now, I'll settle for Cabot."

  "You'll settle?" Ethan asked, and he couldn't help but be a tad snide about it. His eyes glanced out his window—the blinds were pushed up so he could see the soccer fields and the four resident halls—towering over the grass protectively.

  "You know I have the means and the resources to discover things about peculiars you never will," Arbuckle said. "Do not make me resort to force. It will happen, and it will happen soon. Tell me where Miss Cabot is, and no one will get hurt."

  Ethan tilted his head back, a small smirk on his face. "You know, the biggest lesson I've learned living as long as I have?" he asked. "Time is on my side. I have no doubt you'd come up with your research much faster than I ever will, but I'll live longer. And I'm absolutely certain that information will eventually make its way to me as long as I have the patience." He stood then, checking his wristwatch before loosening his belt. "I must go now, General. I'm sorry, but I won't be able to assist you further."

  Before General Arbuckle could respond, he hung up the phone.

  "Now," Ethan murmured to himself. "Let's draw a nice bath. You deserve some R and R."

  Something was going to happen. Ethan knew that. He wouldn’t deny it. Something big. Something bad. General Arbuckle wouldn’t let this go without a fight. Heck, the guy was prone to violence. He was a calculating, decorated war veteran and a strategist for the United States of America.

  Ethan couldn’t predict what that was. He didn’t even know if he was prepared for it. But he had faith. Somehow, he knew that everything would be okay. What would come, would come, and nothing would change it. The best thing everyone could do was take it one step at a time.

  And the next step?

  Getting Jane Cabot back safe and sound.

  Brielle Rivera was scared. Perhaps scared was the wrong word. Worried, maybe. Anxious. Slightly fearful. Currently, she paved the length of Ethan's empty office, waiting for Marvin, Jane, and everyone else. To be honest, she had no idea where Ethan was. She expected him at his desk and wanted to confess everything to him before everyone arrived. This way, Ethan would know the truth, and she wouldn't have to carry the weight of the guilt around on her shoulders any longer. She would finally be free.

  Brielle reached up and cupped the back of her neck with her palm, wincing at the thought. She had kept so many secrets for so long; she wasn't even sure what was known and what wasn't. She wasn't even sure she knew how to confess. The fact that she had people who cared about her was a new concept for her; she had been alone for so long ...

  Not alone in the way that Sophie was. Brielle hadn't literally been abandoned, given up because her parents didn't love her or want her anymore. No, her parents were still around. They just had other things on their plate than to worry about what Brielle was getting into that day. Her mother—a shifter—was a lawyer, a prosecutor, and her job meant everything to her. It had been a dream for her to work for the small town she grew up in as a prosecutor, and she worked incessantly in order to show just how much she cherished her job. This meant that parental duties fell flat, and Brielle was left to take care of things on her own.

  Her father, on the other hand, was in and out of her life when it best suited his needs. He was a self-employed mechanic who was a free spirit and rejected any form of commitment as straining and life-threatening. Her mother always said he was the last straw of her bad boy phase, and from then on out, she only dated professional businessmen with a dental plan and good credit. Brielle never said anything, but she was bitter that it took an unwanted pregnancy for her mom to get her shit together.

  Brielle's step-father was the only person Brielle respected and admired, though she couldn't deny that her mother worked hard to graduate law school and raise a daughter on her own with little financial help. Luckily, Falling Heights had a small population of big-hearted people who offered constant support in different forms, whether it was casseroles, babysitting, or a weekend job. Stephanie Yak, her mother, said the only gift Brielle's father had ever given her was a good, solid last name; that was the only thing her mother took from him to give to Brielle. If that hadn't happened, she would have been Brielle Yak. Brielle was never sure how to feel about this.

  Stephanie met her future husband through this generosity. Though Stephanie was Jewish, she donated and volunteered a lot at the community church and fell in love with the pastor's son, Phil Bambridge. He had a child as well, a son named Cillian. When the two got married, Stephanie and Brielle moved in with the two and started an awkward, forced family. Phil offered to adopt Brielle and give her his last name, but for some reason, her mother refused. Brielle actually wanted to feel like she be
longed to a real family, like she belonged to this man who was training to take over as pastor once his father retired and had opened up a small chain of grocery stores by himself. For some reason, her mother thought it would insult her father, as if the guy had any say in what Brielle wanted for herself.

  Her new step-brother was extremely good looking and knew it, to the point where Brielle was uncomfortable being around him. She knew she wasn't much to look at, and she was fine with it, but that didn't mean she wanted Cillian to check her out or stare too long. She had no idea how someone like Cillian could come from someone like Phil, but maybe it was the mother's influence.

  When Stephanie decided to tell both Phil and Cillian what she was without asking Brielle first, Brielle lost it. It was the first time Brielle was vicious with her mother. In her opinion, Stephanie had no right to do such a thing without talking to her first. Of course, her mother hadn't ever considered her feelings, choosing to make choices regardless. Phil was surprisingly accepting of them both; Cillian was more curious about Brielle than ever, to the point where he would get over to Catalina as much as he could when he had time off from school just to try and see Brielle at her academy. Brielle was adamant he not be let in, even as a visitor, and would ignore his presence as best as she could. She wished she could have told her mom about it, but she didn't trust Stephanie not to say something to Phil—or worse, Cillian himself.

  And then Cillian raped Jane, and everything changed.

  Brielle didn't know the details, but apparently, Cillian and Michael had found each other. Because Cillian was looking for any way into anything peculiar, he was ripe for the picking, and Michael took advantage of that. He wanted to keep tabs on Sophie because Sophie was the only other known physical. In order to do that, Michael wanted Jane watched, seeing as how Jane was her Sophie’s friend. He assigned Cillian to do so, but Cillian went too far. Michael didn't approve—which was putting it nicely—and was about to kill Cillian when Cillian told Michael about her and why she was more than just a shifter. So Cillian was allowed to live as long as Brielle did everything Michael told her to do.