by Moxie North
“You have pictures?”
Eden pulled out her phone and swiped through a few before showing him a picture of a baby with an enormous bow on the top of her head. She was dressed in a tiny football jersey and the bow matched the team colors.
“She’s cute.”
“She is, I should see her on my way home,” Eden sighed.
“You miss your family?”
Eden shrugged. “I’m usually away from them. I was a cop for a few years.”
“A cop?” Kellan wouldn’t have guessed that. Then again, what other kind of job led someone to be a bodyguard?
“It was okay for a while, but it didn’t fit. I tried being a firefighter.”
“Wait, you were a cop and a firefighter?” Kellan thought finishing college and getting just one job was an accomplishment. He was starting to feel a little lame in comparison.
“I was. I didn’t realize that it was less about fighting fires than it was sitting around waiting for medical calls. So, I applied to be a hotshot.”
“Wait, you’re telling me that not only were you a firefighter, but you jumped out of airplanes to fight fires?”
“Of course not. They were usually helicopters, and most often it was by truck. But at least wildfires were all in. Days and days of backbreaking work. It was exhausting, but in a good way. You could see the difference you would make when you could save someone’s home or kept a fire from spreading.”
“How in the world did you end up doing this job?”
Eden smiled. “King, my boss, found me in a bar and offered me something different.”
“You like different?”
Eden looked at him hard. It made him swallow against the feeling that hit him in the chest. “I like a challenge.”
Kellan couldn’t deny the fact his boring life would not be interesting to a woman like her. He’d have to just enjoy the time he was able to spend with her before he went to jail. Memories of his time with Eden might keep him sane.
They continued to chat. Kellan told her about the books he’d read. She nodded and said she read too when she could, but didn’t tell him what she read. It was almost an hour later that his eyelids started to droop. He was fighting it, he didn’t want to close them on Eden and open them to a frowning Zion.
“Kellan. Get some sleep. I’m here.”
Letting the exhaustion take him into a fitful sleep, he dreamed of silver-green eyes and a woman that he would most likely compare everyone in the future to.
Chapter 9
Her mate had no idea how much his future was going to change. No idea how fiercely she would fight for him.
A tiny fraction of her mind hoped that she was wrong. Hoped that seeing him again would erase her idea of him being her mate. It was stupid, the call couldn’t be faked. It wasn’t something that was vague. It was everything to Kindred. A once-in-a-lifetime call that meant the one person that was perfect for them in every way was in front of them.
Her mate wasn’t going to jail. That much was certain. She’d run with him against the Odal Clan’s wishes if she had to. He wasn’t going to take the fall for someone else. Nothing about his history came up with anything that proved he was none other than a stand-up citizen and a loyal employee. King and AJ, KSI’s tech, had dug deep and didn’t even find a parking ticket attached to his name.
He was a good man. AJ even went through his social media and he was still friends with some of his exes. Not that it bothered Eden, but it did speak to how things went with him and other women. It also meant that he wasn’t someone that only thought of himself.
Eden kept her eyes on her sleeping mate and let the happiness start to creep in. She’d found the one person she wasn’t looking for. Someone that she didn’t know that much about but couldn’t wait to truly meet. It was all excitement and wonder for her. For Kellan, well, she’d have to tell him carefully. She knew she couldn’t just blurt it out to him when she heard the call. He’d been barely conscious. There would have been a chance he wouldn’t even have remembered her saying it.
In the short few minutes where she’d let her eyes drop closed, she wasn’t sleeping. She was imagining a life that hadn’t happened yet. A life that couldn’t happen until the man in the bed knew his life had changed too. That his mate, a Kindred, wanted to claim him.
While she was thinking, the door to the room slid open. She expected to hear the telltale squeak of the nurse’s thick-soled shoes. Instead, the sound was of dress shoes, flat-bottomed and hard. Coming alert, she feigned sleep to see if she could get the advantage. She took in a shallow breath and knew this wasn’t someone that had been in the room before. A stranger in an ICU room was cause for alarm. There were three steps after the door slid closed. Two more steps as the person, a man by the scent of him, got closer to Kellan’s bed.
Knowing she had to time it right, she waited for the inevitable pause the intruder would take to ensure that both parties were still sleeping.
Waiting for the exact moment she could catch the intruder off guard, she listened to the pounding of the man’s heartbeat. He was nervous… or excited. Both meant that there was no happy ending to the next few seconds.
Careful not to move, she braced her body, her muscles coiled to spring. The second she decided to move, Eden shot forward with a thunderous roar in one leap across the bed. Her murderous rage surprised her as her bear thirsted for blood and she had to hold back as her claws came out and dug into the man as she slammed him against the opposite wall. The noise shook the room, she knew people would hear and come running.
The man called out as his body hit the wall. It was a loud grunt and he yelled out, “Fuck!”
Eden responded with a growl and the man pushed back against her grip trying to kick at her knees. He had no chance of overpowering her, but a well-placed kick could cause her to lose her balance.
“Stop fighting,” she growled quietly, not wanting to involve Kellan. She also didn’t want to get distracted and shift in the small room.
She struggled with the man, not that she couldn’t have taken him, but she didn’t want whoever this person was to splatter blood all over the room by accidentally nicking an artery with her claw. She clocked the syringe in his hand and knew she had been right to react the way she did.
“Drop the needle,” she ordered as she got her arms around the man and started to squeeze.
Her bear wanted blood, but she also knew she had to restrain herself. She wrestled with the man, easily overpowering him, but also trying to avoid getting stuck with the needle herself.
Deciding enough was enough, she threw the man onto the floor and pinned him down with her boot in the middle of his chest. She reached into the inside pocket of her leather jacket and fished out a set of zip ties. There was also a small flashlight, a Taser, and an extra clip for her gun if she was carrying one, which today was located in her boot. She also kept her Clan knife she received when she came of age at her back.
“Security!” Eden called out as she tightened the ties on the man’s wrists.
“Get off me, you animal!” he screamed into the floor.
“Shut up. You lost, get over it.”
A nurse ran to the door, assessed the situation, and raced back to the desk calling out for help. Two members of security arrived no more than a minute later, a man and a woman that looked like they were less than enthused about getting involved when a Kindred was in the room.
“What was in the syringe?” Eden demanded.
“You’re crazy. I work here, it’s medicine,” the man huffed. Eden was still applying enough pressure on his back with her knee that he couldn’t get a full breath of air.
Security positioned around the man before Eden let up on him. “Keep him here a minute, I have questions.”
Turning to Kellan, she saw him sitting up in bed, his eyes wide. But they weren’t on the intruder now sporting the security guard’s metal cuffs, they were fixed on her.
“You okay?” she asked, her heart was still pounding from the quick actio
n.
“I think so,” he said. Eden checked his heart rate on the monitor and it was as high as hers felt.
A man came running down the hallway, a human by the smell of him, and he was also wearing a badge at his hip.
“Status?” he asked the security guards.
Eden took offense. As if they had any clue. “And you are?”
“Head of hospital security. My name is Grey Meyer. You must be from KSI?”
“I am, my name is Eden. This man was trying to inject Mr. Huntley with whatever is in that syringe.”
“Sir? Do you work here?” Grey asked.
“Of course, see the coat?” the man said with a sneer.
“And your name?”
“It’s on my ID badge.”
“Which is?” Grey continued, guessing correctly the man couldn’t say without looking down at the tag.
“Fuck you.”
“As I thought,” Grey said calmly. “You know we have cameras all over this hospital. We’ll find your car, find your entry point, and figure out who you are.”
“Go ahead!” the man spat. “I’m doing what’s right. I’m one of the pure!”
Grey turned to Eden and said, “That’s telling. Guys, can you please escort him from the patient’s room. Put him in a secure room until the police get here. If you have to gag him, feel free. Do not leave him unattended. Double up. Until we find out what’s in that syringe I’m going to assume this is going down as a case of attempted murder.”
“Fuck you! You should respect your own kind!” the man hissed at Grey.
Eden didn’t need to hear any more. He was obviously anti-Kindred and those people could not be reasoned with.
The security guards removed him and Grey approached the bed. “Mr. Huntley?”
“Yes,” Kellan said. He looked tense and Eden wanted to comfort him, but couldn’t without having to explain herself.
“Do you know that man?”
“Never seen him before. Then again, my memory has been unreliable lately.”
Grey turned to Eden, “Eden, would you mind speaking with me in the hallway?”
Eden nodded but didn’t leave Kellan, she was clearly still riled up.
“Mr. Huntley, I’d like the doctors to come in and examine you. Just as a precaution.”
“He didn’t touch him,” Eden growled.
Grey’s eyes came to her. “I don’t doubt it, but I need to make sure I’ve followed procedure.”
Eden nodded in reluctant agreement and stepped out of the room while a nurse that she knew took her place. Grey came out and closed the door to the room. Through the glass Eden could see Kellan had his eyes on her and he looked angry and confused. About what, she didn’t know but she’d have time for that later.
Glancing at her phone, she shot off a quick update to Zion and King letting them know what had happened. She could expect a call from her boss any minute.
“I was informed that the Huntley situation was more of a possible runner— we’ve seen it before with someone that is suspected of committing a crime. I wouldn’t have allowed KSI to enter my hospital if I knew there was a chance a patient was at risk. I would have had security on him myself.”
Eden’s eyes flashed at the man in anger and she was slightly impressed he didn’t flinch. “The investigation is ongoing. He hasn’t been charged with anything. We were hired to protect him. If anything, this incident proves that he’s being set up and that someone wants to silence him before he remembers anything.”
“You’re sure he doesn’t remember anything? Maybe this is all part of a bigger plan.”
Having someone disparage her mate made an anger build inside her that she usually reserved for the lowest scum of the earth. Taking a step closer to the human, who still didn’t flinch, she said in a low growl, “That man in there is my mate. He’s been poisoned. I could smell it when I first got here. The smell has dissipated since he woke up. He has no memory and I believe that there is another party involved in this theft. No one is going to charge him with anything, and no one is going to get near him.”
Grey stared her down and she gave him points. She was eye to eye with him and was holding back her fangs with everything she had.
“I wasn’t aware he was your mate. I don’t have that information in my files about him.”
“That’s because he doesn’t know and won’t until I feel he’s ready.”
“Well, shit,” Grey sighed. “That complicates matters. You were hired by Odal, right?”
“Correct.”
“They’ll want blood for this.” He stated this as a fact.
“They do, but they aren’t getting it from Kellan. He’s being set up and I’m going to prove it.”
“I’m glad you were here. The paperwork for murder in a hospital is considerable,” he said dryly.
“I bet. I’m here or my partner Zion is. I wouldn’t say no to a hallway guard. I’m going to see if we can get him discharged. He needs to be in a secure location and there are too many variables here.”
“Agreed. As soon as the doctor clears it. Here’s my card if you need to contact me. If you want I’ll let you know what we find out about the perp. I doubt he’ll be offering up much information. But he’s got to be in the system. A hit like this is almost always bought and paid for by someone else.”
“Please let me know.”
Grey turned to leave and Eden looked back through the glass at Kellan. The nurse was in with him and Dr. Wilson was walking in as she waited. Her eyes were on her mate and she got the same feeling she did when she first heard the call. It hit her in the heart and filled her with warmth. Then that feeling traveled through her body and pooled between her legs. It was like her body wanted nothing more than sex and babies. Eden was pretty sure she wasn’t maternal in any way, but her bear seemed to disagree.
She let the doctor and nurse finish, but didn’t enter the room. Zion arrived and didn’t say anything as he stood beside her. As soon as he was guarding the hallway, she opened the door and walked into the room.
“Dr. Wilson, that syringe needs to be tested.”
“Of course. It’s not even one of ours. Different brand.”
“I’m going to give you a heads up in case there is a bigger conspiracy involved here. That syringe may contain a metabolite solution, similar to what his tests were showing before.”
Dr. Wilson frowned. “We couldn’t explain those readings before.” His tone implied that if they hadn’t found the answer, there wasn’t one. Eden didn’t like that lack of belief on his part.
Eden gave a pointed look to the nurse and she left. “We believe it’s a chemical compound that was created by the government and has recently gone missing. Our research didn’t give us any indication on how much would be lethal. But that syringe looks full. I’m guessing this was an execution attempt.”
Dr. Wilson hesitated before he picked up the syringe that was on the table with a rubber glove. He pulled out a specimen bag from the kit the nurse left and slipped it in. “I’ll be walking this down to the lab and standing over the technician myself. You can trust I won’t let this out of my sight.”
Nodding, she looked back at Kellan while the doctor left.
“You done pretending I’m not here?” Kellan asked, his voice full of anger.
Spinning around, she crossed her arms and glared at him. “You’re pissed at me?” Eden scoffed.
“Yeah, I’m pissed at you. Some guy tried to, I’m not sure, but it seemed like he was trying to kill me. You took him down like a fucking ninja. Then you’re all business.”
“That’s my job, Kellan. I guarded your body. This is what I do.”
“I heard you growl.”
“So?”
“So, you were angry. I pegged you for the calm and cool bodyguard that didn’t get ruffled by anything.”
Eden wanted to yell at him because it wasn’t a client being attacked, it was her mate. Her one and only. She couldn’t do that. Not yet.
“I’m… invested.”
Kellan made a choking noise, “You think? Eden, you seem to like me. It’s okay, I like you too. I like you a lot.” He was being earnest and he got the impression Eden wasn’t being honest.
“You’re sick,” she said, implying his physical state, not his mental.
“I’m getting better. I already feel more like myself. It’s not that.”
“We can talk about this later. I want you out of here.”
“Out of here? To where? Jail?”
A low scary sound came out of her, something between a growl and a rumble that he could feel over his skin. “No! Not jail. I’m going to go call Ritch and let him know that I’m taking you to a safe house. I’ll have King arrange something.”
“But if someone tried to kill me, won’t Ritch realize I’m not guilty?”
“I can’t begin to guess what he’ll think. I’ll make him understand the situation. If you’re not going to die walking out of here, I’m taking you with me.”
“Why? Eden, can’t you tell me? There’s something else. I can feel it.”
Eden wanted to tell him. It was on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to tell everyone. Hell, if she did social media, she’d already have updated her status. That was so not like her at all. But she had a mate and her whole idea of being the capable strong woman she was, now included being a proud mate.
“We can talk about it later. For now, I need to talk to Ritch.”
Eden turned away, knowing that she was being a coward. She wanted to tell him about who he was to her, but part of her was worried he wouldn’t be as happy about it as she was. There was hope, because she couldn’t imagine that the Great Mother that watched over them all would give her a mate that didn’t want her.
For the first time in her life she didn’t know what to do. She had two options: stay and tell him the truth, or leave and take her secret with her? Her bear wanted what it wanted, but also knew that this wasn’t something that could be done casually. Her steps faltered as her body tried to stay as her mind told her to leave. Glancing back one last time, she hoped that last look would carry her over to do the job she came there for. She left the room before she could blurt out the truth to him, and as she made her way down the hallway and away from her temptation, she pulled out her phone and dialed King.
