I’m not shy being naked in front of Tyler and Ranger, which is probably why Aaron sent them. Tyler is married to the love of his life, and Ranger may be single but he isn’t a jerk. They’re both Doms and have seen me naked or near naked and flogged at parties more times than I can count.
If Nathan were here, though, I’d be bothered. Even though he’s a shifter and they don’t usually notice nudity, he still creeps me out too much to be naked around him.
I stripped and put my clothes and shoes in the trash bag, and Tyler wiped me down with baby wipes while Ranger worked on my hair. It was very methodical and didn’t arouse me in the least. I mean, it’s hard to get aroused when someone is wiping brains from your body. Moisture had soaked through and gotten my skin wet even through my clothes and I was a real mess.
When they were done, Tyler produced a spare dress shirt he kept with him for those times when a t-shirt wasn’t good enough. It came down to mid-thigh on me, thank goodness. They all wear practically invisible earpieces to talk to each other, and when I was mostly decent they let Nathan know, and within a few minutes they opened the door and let him in.
How could Aaron make all of this happen so quickly? His company hires high-dollar bodyguards and security experts. Most of his employees are shifters, but some are humans, and most used to work for the government. His firm takes on military missions for pay when our government can’t send in troops, and he also handles security for lots of singers, rock stars, athletes, politicians, and a bunch of TV and movie stars. He regularly has people going back and forth to Nashville, Atlanta, Orlando, DC, and New York, and some of his people travel on tour worldwide with the singers. The female shifters often work undercover as a rock star’s girlfriend or date, providing security without being obvious. And, of course, on the side, Aaron handles some of the supernatural world’s bad guys. He’s a little like the unofficial supernatural police force, I guess. I don’t know where the funding comes from, but there doesn’t seem to be a shortage. I’m paid a pretty impressive hourly wage for the time I put in fighting things, deposited into my bank account every other week, with taxes held out and everything. I don’t really need the money, and at first it’d seemed wrong to be paid, but Aaron had said I should be compensated for the time away from my family and to just take the money and stop arguing. He’d assured me it wasn’t his personal money paying, and there’s an endowment set up to help the forces of good fight the forces of evil, and that’s all he’s ever said about the funding.
So, I assumed the “cleanup crew” would arrive soon. I’d never seen them in action, but I’d seen the before and after a few times and knew they were capable of working magic, which is why I wasn’t freaking out too much about the amount of brains and blood in my office lobby.
The guys had pulled all of the dead men’s ID out and were looking through it. They gave the names and driver’s license numbers out loud, which let me know they were radioing it in to someone back at the office. About that time Aaron walked in, gave a quick look around the room, and then stepped in front of me and looked like he was going to give me a hug, so I put my hands up to fend him off. I wasn’t ready to fall apart just yet, and if he hugged me I’d lose the last bits of self-control I was holding onto. His grin let me know he understood, and he said the cleanup crew shouldn’t be too far behind him. He handed me some flip flops (in October!) and jeans and a shirt, and I walked into my office to put them on. Thank goodness I’d set my purse down when I first saw them and it was far enough away it didn’t get messed up too bad. Ranger had already wiped it down with baby wipes and it seemed to be mostly okay.
When I walked back into the outer office, Tyler and Ranger were gone, Aaron and Nathan were looking at each other with big eyes, and they both looked a little scared.
I’d never seen them look scared before.
“Okay, you guys look a bit freaked out, which isn’t making me feel all warm and fuzzy. I take it we know who the boss is — wanna let me know who wanted to talk to me?”
“His name is Mordecai,” Nathan said, his voice emotionless. “He is...powerful. As with Aaron, most supernaturals aren’t really sure what Mordecai is. Rumor has it he’s one of the beings who were worshiped as a god before Christianity took hold. Without the prayers and attention of his worshipers he no longer has the power of one of the gods of old, but he’s still quite powerful. He will tell you he changed his name when he became something other than what he was, but that’s all he’ll say.”
The fact Nathan was talking instead of Aaron further set my nerves on edge, and I wasn’t sure who to look at, so I focused on the fish tank as I asked, “Is he a good guy or a bad guy?”
“For once, you aren’t asking the right questions.” Aaron said. “He might describe himself as a good guy, but I’m not sure either definition works for him. He seems to be beyond good and bad. If pushed, I’d say he’s more good than bad, though.”
I thought a moment. “Is he enemies of anyone who’s a friend of mine? Or have I done anything to make an enemy of him?”
Aaron gave a miniscule single shoulder shrug. “I don’t know how he feels about Abbott, but he and I are allies of old.” He looked down and added, “Or, we were, before someone under my protection killed two of his men.”
Time to stop guessing what the right question was and get an answer. “Stop making me play fucking twenty questions and just tell me what I need to know, and why the two of you look scared!”
“Because you just killed two of his people,” Nathan said as if it should’ve been obvious, “and that means war. He will be pissed.”
“But it was self-defense! They were going to make me go somewhere against my will, and it’s always better to fight where you are than where they take you, right? Any idea why he wanted to talk to me? Or why the men he sent said if I didn’t come of my own accord they’d hurt me to get me to their boss?”
Aaron handed the wallet he was holding to Nathan and asked me, “They said that? I need to know exactly what was said Kirsten, this is important.”
“They said they had orders to take me to their boss, that he wanted to talk to me. I asked who their boss was, they said I wouldn’t know the name so there was no purpose in telling me. I asked if they had any intention of hurting me, and the small one gave me a leer and said ‘not if you come with us without putting up a fight’.” I thought back and added, “Wait, he said they’d hurt me if I didn’t come willingly, and refusing wouldn’t be a good idea. Those were his words.”
“So you killed them.”
“You’re the one who told me to kill first and ask questions later!” I reminded him. “But I did ask questions first, and once I knew they were going to take me somewhere without my consent, and would hurt me if I refused, blowing up their heads seemed my best option! I didn’t know what they were, and I wanted to kill them before they had a chance to hurt me.” I touched my cheekbone and held back a wince. “My shoulder and face both hurt. Might not be a bad idea to get Doc to look at my shoulder, but my face probably just needs ice.”
“The cold pack’s in my car. I’ll make arrangements with Doc.”
He sighed and looked back at the bodies, as if trying to figure out our best course of action.
“Should I call this Mordecai dude and try to talk my way out of this?” I asked.
“No, I’ll call him, but I’ll probably put you on the phone at some point. You should also know, he’s the person I called in to help me with the murders, as well as the missing women. He’s in town at my request.”
He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and made the call.
“Hello, Mordecai, I’ve just came to the aid of a damsel in distress. It seems two of your people were inclined to take one of my people against her will, and she made a bit of a mess of them. Is there any particular reason you’re sending people to kidnap someone under my protection?”
There was that phrase again, ‘under his protection’. The wording sounded formal, and I made a note to ask him
about it later. I like to think I can take care of myself, but common sense told me I’ve created some powerful enemies while helping Aaron fight the bad guys, so I guess it’s nice having people who will show up quickly to save my ass when it’s needed. Or, just to clean up after I’ve saved my own ass. Still, I needed to ask him about it when we weren’t in the middle of a crisis, to be sure I knew exactly what it meant. Things could get complicated in the supernatural world, and I needed to be sure this didn’t mean he owned me or anything. I’d already figured out it meant some of the repercussions for my killing these men would land in his lap, so it likely made me ‘his’ in a way I wouldn’t like.
“You really should’ve picked up a phone or something,” Aaron said into the phone. “Sending people who told her she wouldn’t get hurt if she came quietly wasn’t a very good idea. She killed them both, Mordecai.” He paused. “No, you weren’t mistaken, she’s human.” Another pause, and then, “I understand you’re upset, but she had every right to do whatever was necessary to save herself from an imminent abduction. I’ve taught her that against supernaturals she needs to kill first and ask questions later, and she still asked enough to questions to understand they intended to kidnap her before she struck. I’m going to let you talk to Kirsten, now.”
He handed me the phone, and by this time I was good and mad. The more I thought about it, the angrier I got. Why the hell couldn’t he pick up the phone, introduce himself, tell me what he wanted to talk to me about, and invite me to some public place to talk? Tell me to feel free to bring backup if I needed? I’d have checked with Aaron and he’d have said no problem and would have sent people with me or came with me himself. I hated killing people, and this Mordecai had put me in a situation where I’d felt cornered into doing just that.
So, I was pissed when I took the phone, and started speaking without hearing his voice. “What, you thought the little weak human female wouldn’t have a choice but to be kidnapped? I don’t appreciate having the shit scared out of me, or getting the threat that if I didn’t submit and come quietly off to wherever the hell they were taking me that they’d hurt me. Always better to fight where you are than where you’re taken, so I fought here before they had a chance to tie me up or something. Why the hell couldn’t you pick up the phone in a civilized manner and invite me to some public place if you wanted to talk to me? I don’t know who the hell you are, but so far I’m not impressed.”
“Sooooo, your temper matches your last name, Miss O’Shea. Perhaps I have made a bad first impression. I’d like to start over, would you allow me to buy you dinner?”
“You want to buy me dinner?” Exasperated, I looked up at Aaron. He grimaced. I spoke back into the phone. “Are you expecting me to come alone?”
“No, I don’t suppose you will agree to meet me alone at this point, and I’m thinking a mediator might not be a bad idea. I will invite you and Aaron, perhaps you should put him back on the phone?”
I pushed the mute button and told Aaron, “He wants you again. I have the afternoon free until I pick Lauren up at four from school. I’d planned to eat lunch with her, but Mr. Jerkoff ruined those plans with his thugs. I can’t make plans for this evening until I talk to Xiaolan to see if she has plans.”
Aaron arranged for us to meet Mordecai for lunch at a restaurant not too far from Lauren’s school, and when he disconnected the call he told me, “Mordecai arrived in town yesterday and spent some time with Denny, but he and I’ve only spoken on the phone. He has some information about the demon who zapped your energy, though.”
He looked at Nathan, then back to me, and I had the feeling this was the first he’d had a chance to tell Nathan, too.
“The demon’s name is Xaephan,” Aaron continued, “and he’s a second level demon. We’ve never fought anything this high up before. There’s only one top level demon, and we think there are three at the next level. Mordecai may be one of the few beings with the ability to help fight him.”
“So, I can’t stay ticked at him.” Logic and reality over emotions. I didn’t have to like it, but would likely have to work with him.
“No, I let you go off on him on the phone because I want to back him down from holding us responsible for the deaths of his men, but you need to calm down and be reasonable with him from here on out.”
“Beautiful.”
The cleanup crew arrived, and we left.
Chapter Twelve
We had enough time to drive out to my house so I could change into something nicer. I’d have been fine in the suit I had to throw away, which just ticked me off all over again. In truth, I was pissed I’d been forced to kill men who were following orders, and who likely wouldn’t have hurt me. I knew they’d taken away my options, but I’d ended their lives and there was no undo button in real life.
So, I was still ranting about the suit because it was easier to deal with than the lives of the two men.
“No,” Aaron told me, his voice patient. “You can’t bill him for the suit. I’ll buy you another since you lost it as a result of working for me, but if you demand recompense from Mordecai for the suit, he might demand recompense for his men.”
“I don’t want you to buy me a suit. I’m still pissed I was forced to kill those two men, and knowing they were just taking me to a meeting to talk to someone, and I wouldn’t have been hurt, really pisses me off. I killed them for no reason.”
“No, Bug. With the information you had in that moment, you made the right decision. I don’t want you to hesitate and get yourself killed in the future because of this.” He made a turn and added, “Mordecai knows you weren’t in the wrong or he wouldn’t be inviting us to a public place for a meal. He made a wrong assumption and his men were killed for it. It’s his fault, not yours.”
I crossed my arms and stared out the window. I didn’t ask if those men had families, because if they did then I’d never be able to forgive Mordecai for putting me in a position where I felt my only option was killing them.
When we got into my house Aaron hugged me as we stepped in the front door. I guess he knew I needed to fall apart and get it over with before we met Mordecai.
The instant his arms went around me, the tears started, but I hadn’t known they were so close to the surface.
We sat on the steps in my foyer and I cried my eyes out while he held me safe in his arms. He didn’t say anything, didn’t try to soothe me, just let me have as much time as I needed for a nice, cathartic crying jag.
When it was over, I pulled out of his arms, went up the steps, blew my nose, and took a two minute shower where I soaped every millimeter of my body to be sure I had the brains off.
He waited for me downstairs as I showered, dressed in another suit, and worked on my face and hair. Seventeen minutes later, I came downstairs and we headed to the restaurant.
We’d parked my car in the restaurant’s parking lot earlier, so he could drive me home and we’d have more time to talk, but I’d have my car available to pick up Lauren later.
Aaron gave his name and we were ushered into a private room, where Mordecai was waiting for us.
When Mordecai stood to greet us, I stopped walking and looked up, speechless.
No wonder the rumors said this man was a god of old. He was probably only a few inches short of seven feet, and was built like a warrior. Bodybuilders often look as if they’ve carefully sculpted their bodies, but Mordecai looked like his body was created in battle. His shoulders were massive, his waist small, and his corded arms huge.
He was dressed in khakis and an oxford shirt, nothing special, but I felt as if I was drooling over him and I needed to pull myself together and say something. My body wanted to kneel before him, and it wasn’t a submissive thing — my instincts pushed me to worship the man, a primal resonation, as if my subconscious recognized him as a god and my safety depended on my showing obeisance. Instead I offered my hand and said “Mordecai, I presume? I’m Kirsten O’Shea.”
He gave a good handshake, nice and firm w
ithout trying to hurt me. “Miss O’Shea, I’m glad you and Mr. Drakko could make it.”
I looked at Aaron. “Drakko?”
Aaron looked at Mordecai. “Hello Mordecai, it’s good to see you again. Most now know me as Aaron Drake.”
“Probably a wise move on your part, removing yourself one more step. Please, come sit down and we will order food and discuss how best to handle the trouble the two of you have stirred.”
We ordered our food and Mordecai started speaking as the door closed behind our server, his eyes on Aaron. “Miss O’Shea has upset the balance by killing the demons and not merely sending them back. The dark side has taken notice, Aaron.” he admonished, sounding like a teacher speaking to a pupil. “You’ve put your human friend at great risk by allowing her to kill beings who should merely be returned to whence they came.”
“Why bother sending them back just so they can return again next week?” I asked. “Maybe it isn’t an issue in parts of the world without a battlefield attracting so many self-proclaimed devil worshipers, but around here it’s become a real problem. Once we figured out I could do more than just send them back, I started doing it.”
“And did killing them seem to calm things down, or create even more chaos?”
“We’ve had one or two calls a month for a while now, and we used to have two calls a week,” I told him.
He tilted his head to acknowledge my point, but said, “Nevertheless, now they’ve sent a second level demon, which to my knowledge hasn’t happened in centuries.” He paused a second, his hand on the table. “Satan is a third level demon. Xaephan is only one level down from the Prince of Hell, who doesn’t call himself King simply because he thinks it sounds sexier to be Prince.”
“And yet, Kirsten managed to make Xaephan leave before he was ready,” Aaron pointed out. “One of her weapons will work against him. He fled this realm a split second before he’d have died.”
Only Human (Kirsten O'Shea Book 1) Page 12
