by Moxie North
King leaned against the front counter of the reception desk at KSI. He was the only person that wouldn’t get scolded by Nadia for invading her territory. Their human receptionist was efficient, fairly civil, and ruled the office.
Nadia was crisply stuffing invoices into envelopes. King had offered to outsource their billing to an outside company, but Nadia had had more than a few things to say to him about it. King was almost two feet taller than her, but that didn’t mean he assumed she couldn’t handle herself. She managed him and the rest of his badass crew with nothing more than an icy stare and a checklist. Her looks could freeze a person on the spot. Most people didn’t see the side of her that was the mother figure for the crew. She knew where they were and where they were supposed to be at all times. She made sure they had their supplies and they all knew that they only had to call, and she would answer.
King knew that KSI wouldn’t run half as well without her. Today, she had her white-blonde hair pulled up in a bun that looked surprisingly like a bow. Normally she was all suits and slicked back hair. Today there was lip gloss, and if he wasn’t mistaken, and his bear nose rarely was, a new perfume. Her normal perfume that she wore heavily when she started had itched his nose, but he’d gotten used to it over the years. This fragrance was a change and his bear was intrigued by the switch.
“That’s a new look,” King remarked.
Nadia glanced up and blinked at him with her big eyes. Her face was so delicate that her eyes often looked cartoonishly large.
“What is?”
“The hair?”
“I always wear a bun,” she sniffed.
“True, but that’s a… pretty bun.”
Nadia raised an eyebrow. She didn’t need to say much more than that and King smiled back at her. He’d never gotten a smile from her, only a smirk.
“Anything new?”
“If there was, I’d tell you.”
King nodded. Let her keep her secrets. “Has Van checked in?”
“He’s taking tomorrow off. I believe he and Anson are picnicking or picking apples or some nonsense.”
King let out a laugh. Anson and Van both had been recently mated. If their mates wanted to pick apples, both men would happily oblige.
“You can’t blame them. Making their mates happy is their main concern. It’s that way for Kindred.”
“I know that, every human knows that. But with Luca in LA, and Zion and Eden on the East Coast, that leaves us shorthanded. You and Hudson will have to pick up the slack.”
King could step in if he needed to. They needed to hire more staff. But that wasn’t just a case of running an ad in the usual places. King had handpicked every member of his crew, and he trusted them with his life.
“I have a few freelancers we can call in. I bet you’re happy Luca is out of town.” King knew that Luca and Nadia didn’t get along, and that was putting it mildly. The two sparred often enough that everyone knew to keep them away from each other, and King usually ended up in the middle of their arguments. Aside from Luca, Nadia liked most of the guys, and he had a feeling she and Eden had a secret friendship neither talked about.
“Luca is not my concern. Nor is the fact that he’s been mailing in his receipts even when he’s here in the city. That’s just petty. Using an envelope and stamp. Who does that anymore?” Nadia’s eyes narrowed with suspicion.
“You scare him,” King said with a smile.
Nadia gave a sniff. “Hardly. I don’t scare anyone,” she dismissed. “You will need to hire more staff. Hudson can’t, and won’t, do it all.”
King’s phone rang and he answered it quickly when he saw the name on the screen. “Eden, any updates?”
He listened as she told him what the hospital situation was. King caught Nadia’s eyes again and started talking. “You need a safe house. Will a hotel do?”
Nadia had started typing on her keyboard as King spoke, “Do you really think that someone is watching that closely?”
Eden let out a long sigh. “I have to believe that he is. They knew he was at the hospital. They knew that he had some kind of security, yet they still risked another attack.”
“Then he does have eyes on him. We’ll arrange a place for you to stay. Can you and Zion share a room?”
“About that…” Eden started.
“Problem?”
“No. Well yes, but not one that can be fixed by room arrangements.” Her voice was resigned.
“Eden, what’s going on?”
King waited, trying to get a read on his employee. Eden rarely was obtuse about anything. This hesitation was unlike her.
“King… He’s my mate.”
“Who is?”
“Kellan Huntley. I haven’t told him yet.”
King dropped his salt and pepper head down onto the counter and thumped it gently against the shining surface. It was becoming an epidemic. His staff were dropping like flies. Mates were popping up everywhere and he was left holding things together.
“Eden, I’m very happy for you. But this situation sounds much more complicated that we initially thought. It’s not what we were hired to do.”
Nadia’s eyes widened and then rolled back dramatically. King smirked as she covered her face with her small hands. Nadia shook her head and let it flop down to the desk where she mumbled into the surface. With a gusty sigh, she lifted her head and started loudly stapling papers together that he was pretty sure did not need to be stapled.
“I know it is. Believe me, I’m just as shocked. I can’t wrap my head around it. I didn’t think it would happen for me and never did I imagine with a human.”
King let out a chuckle. “I’m starting to think the Great Mother is having a laugh. Or maybe I’m being punished for something.”
“Yes, this is all your fault. Let’s start blaming you,” Eden chided.
“Let me get Nadia on your needs and we can talk again about your new man.”
“Ugh, I can’t even let that sink in. Do you think I’ll ever get used to it?”
“Yes. Give us a few and we will get back to you.” He hung up and stared at Nadia.
Nadia pushed up from her chair and started pacing the tiny platform where her desk sat. She was still mumbling and gesturing wildly with her hands before she stopped and glared at him. “King, seriously, I don’t think I can take this anymore. It’s getting out of control. What the hell is happening? Is this normal for Kindred? Is it like the flu? Are you passing it around?” Nadia asked, clearly exasperated.
King chuckled. “I have no idea, but once we find them a place to stay, I’m calling my Clan Crone. If this is going to be an epidemic, I need to know. We don’t have enough staff for this.”
“I don’t have enough patience for this!” Nadia said, throwing her hands in the air. “The mates come in and hang out here, did you know that? They come in and ‘visit.’ They mess up the magazines. It’s annoying. I saw Cora poking at the plants to see if they were real. Now they have little fingernail marks in them. How are we supposed to run this company with… extra non-essential people always milling around?”
“It appears we don’t have much choice.”
Nadia pointed a perfectly manicured finger at him. “So help me, if you shack up? I’m quitting. I can manage the employees. I can not manage all the mates coming and going,” she grumbled.
King struggled to control his laughter. “Please, don’t quit, I’d have to close the business. I’ll find more help as soon as possible. I’ll make sure no one takes the same day off again.”
“Hah, I’ll make sure of that. You just have to back me up.”
King raised two fingers. “Scout’s honor.”
Nadia snorted then sat back down. She adjusted her keyboard with a thwack and started typing loudly and with flourish.
King wasn’t joking about calling the Clan Crone. He needed more of an idea of what was going on. The Crones often called and gave him direction on things, but more often than not it had nothing to do with his employees,
but someone else in the Clans. They were just tokens in a bigger game.
Two employees mated, now a third. If he didn’t know better, the Great Mother was maneuvering the employees of KSI for something bigger. King had always put his faith and trust in the fact that whatever was in line for him was meant to happen. There was no way his crew was matching up so quickly unless that meant having mates and families would be crucial in the future. What that could be, he wouldn’t speculate. But he did figure he needed to be the one to start making the regular calls to the Clan Crone. No more waiting for her to clue him in on what was approaching. He needed to be actively getting ahead of these situations. At least there would be him, Nadia, and AJ to keep the doors open.
With Eden mated, that also meant that covering the Bliss Hartley job was going to be more difficult, especially if Eden couldn’t, or wouldn’t, go back to her.
That would have to wait until he had more time to sort it out. Luca wouldn’t ask to come back; he’d never want to appear like he couldn’t handle a twenty-something pop star. Right now, one of his crew was mated to a human that was apparently on someone’s hit list. Right now? That took priority.
Chapter 10
After what had happened, and the look on her face when she was talking to the head of hospital security, Kellan knew that Eden wasn’t going to let him stay at the hospital. Thankfully, he was feeling stronger hour by hour, his body purging the toxin that had clung to his brain and muscles like tar. He tried to tell Eden that, but she hadn’t stopped pacing since the attempt on his life. She was on and off the phone with several people, and he’d overheard a tense conversation with Ritch that he knew she wouldn’t want to talk about.
She hadn’t held back her anger; that much was for sure. Kellan had never heard anyone speak to the Clan leader like that. Apparently, as far as Eden was concerned, there wasn’t such a thing as protocol that she had to follow.
“I was hired to keep a comatose man from running off. We were told that he was being held as a suspect in a Clan theft.” Eden’s eyes flashed to Kellan as she paced past the end of the bed. He kept quiet, not wanting to distract her and watched as she continued her conversation with Ritch.
“No, it’s not simple. I just apprehended a man that wasn’t here to give him a vitamin shot. Whatever was in that syringe was designed as an attack.”
Kellan wasn’t sure if he should show the horror on his face at how she was talking to Ritch, or give her a thumbs-up.
“There’s more to this theft than just Kellan’s, I mean Mr. Huntley’s, involvement. With all due respect, sir, the investigation’s focus needs to be on other people besides just him. No, I don’t think it’s my job, but I also don’t want to participate in the incarceration of an innocent man. Who would want to kill him?”
Kellan really wished he could hear what Ritch was saying but human ears had their limitations.
“All I’m saying is you need to do what’s best for your Clan and right now that’s figuring out who just tried to attack Kellan. I understand that, sir. All you have to do is make a call and tell them to look at everyone that might be involved.”
Kellan watched as she got angrier, her eyes changing from that lovely green to a bright yellow. A chuffing sound rumbled from her chest before she said in a low rough voice, “He’s mine. My responsibility.”
She didn’t say anything after that for a few seconds and finally said, “Agreed.” Then she dropped the phone on the end of the bed and crossed her arms over her chest.
“You are officially under my custody until this situation is resolved. Do you have any desire to not be under KSI’s protection?” she said these words through gritted teeth. Her body was tense and her presence felt very large in the room.
“Eden,” he said calmly. “Why would I not want to be protected?”
“Because Odal is still paying for me. He’s the one that thinks you’re guilty. The Clan was pushing the DA to press charges, but he declined. They needed more direct proof that it was you. At this point, you’re a free man. You could go home. No one is stopping you.”
“Would you be there?”
Eden hesitated. “I’ll be by your side, but your house isn’t safe enough. Whoever is doing this knows where you are, knows your routine, and where you live. We need to be somewhere else.”
“Eden, I still feel like you’re keeping something from me. Can you tell me what it is yet?”
She shook her head and glanced away from him. “Not yet. Not until I know that you aren’t going to be attacked in your sleep.” The last words were said with a growl at the end reminding him she wasn’t human.
Worried that she was on the edge of losing it on some unsuspecting orderly, he said in a firm calm tone, “Then we need to leave. Whether the doctor wants me to or not. I’ll sign out against medical advice. Can you find me my clothes?”
Eden went to the cabinet and pulled out his bag of clothes. She threw it on the bed beside him and then turned and strode to the nurses’ station, pulling the curtain around his bed as she went.
Kellan slid out of from under the blankets and dumped out his clothes. He could hear the argument from the nurse that he wasn’t cleared to leave. Then Eden’s voice got low and he couldn’t make out what she was saying. A minute later she was in his room again just as he was pulling on a pair of jeans under his hospital gown.
“Here’s the paperwork. Sign it and they’ll come remove your IV.”
Kellan unsnapped the gown and tossed it on the bed. He stood there in just a pair of jeans with his chest bare and heard Eden suck in a breath.
She was watching him with yellow eyes and fuck if it didn’t make his cock wake up. Women had looked at him before, admired him in the gym or at the beach. It wasn’t something he was asking for so he brushed it off. Having Eden look at him like she wanted to jump him right there on the ICU floor made him feel pretty damn proud. She liked what she saw, and he was glad he’d put in so many hours at the gym.
Reaching his hand up to his chest, he started unpeeling the heart monitors. One by one they fell to the bed, causing the monitor behind him to scream erratically.
Eden walked towards him and only stopped when she was inches from his body as she reached around to hit the silence button on the machine. He heard her take in a deep breath and he wasn’t sure if she growled or cleared her throat as she took a step back.
“What was that?” Kellan breathed in deeply, finally able to take in Eden’s scent. It was a clean smell with a hint of some flower, like she’d used a bodywash that matched her shampoo. It reminded him of spring.
“What?”
“That sound.”
“You’re attractive. I like attractive men,” Eden said, taking a step back.
“Attractive?” Kellan mocked. “You growled.”
Eden took another step back. “I’m a bear. I do that.”
“Why do I get the feeling that you’re afraid to be close to me?”
“I’m not afraid. I’m being cautious. You’ve been ill… I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Hurt me?”
“Shit, no, not hurt physically. Can we just get out of here? I don’t like the way it smells here. I can’t tell if someone who shouldn’t be here is coming. When we get to the safe house I can acclimate to the environment, I’ll be able to know what’s normal and expected.”
Her agitation was skimming over his skin like an electrical current. He didn’t like it for her or for him. “I just need my IV out and we can leave,” he said carefully. He grabbed the clipboard with the paperwork on it, signed it quickly with the attached pen and dropped it back on the bed.
Continuing to get dressed, he kept his eyes on the edge of the curtain after Eden took the paperwork back outside. She returned with a nurse who removed his IV and put gauze and tape over the wound on the back of his hand. He grabbed his shirt and the dark navy blue sweater from the end of the bed and pulled it over his head. Eden stood nearby, watching him with her arms crossed and a fierce loo
k on her face.
He could have sworn that he heard her growl again as the nurse approached him when he was still bare-chested. As he grabbed his wallet and watch out of the plastic bag, he turned to her and she was eyeing him up and down.
He glanced down at himself and then back up to meet her impossibly green eyes. “Did I forget something?”
“Let’s go,” she said, turning on her heel.
Kellan caught up to her and glanced over his shoulder as Zion took up the position behind him. They marched him out of the hospital to a dark SUV parked in the lot. He was about to get inside when Eden put a hand on his chest. “Wait.”
Zion dropped to the ground and rolled under the vehicle. He was gone for a number of seconds and Kellan kept looking to the ground and back to Eden.
“What...”
Zion rolled back out and announced, “Clear.”
“What the hell was he looking for?” Kellan asked Eden with horror in his voice. There was only one reason he could think of and the thought made his guts twist.
“Bombs,” Zion answered instead.
“Fuck me.” Kellan couldn’t believe someone would blow him up. He still couldn’t believe that anyone would want him dead. He was a numbers guy, a bean counter, not some mafia informant. Then again, with millions of dollars on the line, what wouldn’t people do to get away with it?
“Get in. Middle seat,” Eden directed.
“Are you sitting with me?”
“No, I’ll be in the front seat. If you need to lie down to avoid gunfire I want you to have the whole seat,” she said firmly.
“I—do you realize how insane that sounds?” Kellan said, getting angry. “If I’m lying down in the back seat in this mythical shootout, where are you?”
Eden held the door open for him. “Returning fire.”
“Fucking hell,” he ground out. He tried to stare her down and she stared right back. Conceding, he got in, slid to the middle seat, and buckled up.
