aHunter4Ever (7 page)

A shuffle of feet approached them.

Something pushed down on the lid.

Partlan aimed the gun so that he would be ready to shoot once the lid was
opened. Grace’s body tensed beside his and her fingers tightening on his shirt.
Her breathing slowed and he knew she was readying herself for a battle also.
Both of them were focused on preventing their capture.

“Looks like the right label.” The voice was above them. “No need to look
inside.”

“Good. I hate dead bodies.”

“You’re in the wrong line of business then.”

“It pays the bills.” The depression on the top of the box disappeared.
“Let’s move them.”

Partlan exhaled the breath he’d been holding. Grace released his shirt
and sagged back against his side. There was a jolting of the box and then it
was being rolled along the floor. The clanging of squeaky metal wheels against
the tile was in stark contrast to the muted breathing inside the casket. They
were jostled over a ramp and then pushed against a barrier with such force they
rocked back and forth before settling upright.

“We are in a vehicle.” Partlan kept his voice low.

“On our way to the funeral home.” Her words were tinted with sarcasm.
“This is not how I wanted to go to a mortuary.”

“Is there a good way to go there?” Partlan’s tone was dry.

Grace choked back a laugh. “I think that’s the first humorous thing I’ve
heard you say.”

“There has been little reason for levity.”

“And you think on our way to a cemetery in a box reserved for the dead,
is the right time?”

“It has made you forget our predicament.”

“I suppose.” Grace sighed. “I wish I had another phone.”

“It is too easy to track us.”

“What’s the plan once we’ve been dropped off?”

“My orders are to find the nearest team.” Partlan kept his tone neutral.
“I have warned away any reinforcements because of the Albireons.”

“Is your team close to the FBI headquarters?”

“No.”

“Then it’s a no-go. You said that you would follow me to headquarters. I
think the FBI is the safest way to protect you. After that, we can see what
happens. What I need to know is if you’ve considered what we do when this
vehicle stops?”

Partlan fought back his objection. Every instinct in him knew that going
to the Federal Headquarters was wrong. It was dangerous. They already knew that
he had been detained by the FBI and they would be certain to watch the
building. He had given his word, and he would not disappoint her. As long as
there was no immediate threat at her office, then he would lead her there.

“As you wish.” Partlan touched her arm. “If there is any risk, I will not
take you there. My job is to protect you and that is what I mean to do.”

“I can defend myself.” Grace cleared her throat. “Which reminds me. You
still have my gun. I’ll need it back.”

“You do not understand the menace you are up against.”

“You mean the Albireons?” Grace’s voice was severe. “If they are truly
extraterrestrials, like you claim, then I’ll deal with that as I would any
other criminal. I’ll arrest them. I refuse to announce to the office that we’re
being chased by ET.”

“They cannot help us if you do not let them know what the threat is.”

“They’ll lock both of us up in the looney bin.” Grace shifted her body so
that her face was closer to him. “You may want to use that as your defense, but
I will not have my career ruined over this. You’re my responsibility and I’m
taking you into headquarters where you’ll be safe.”

“You do not need to be upset.” Partlan kept his voice low. “When we are
outside, I will return your weapon. I have agreed to do as you ask.”

“Good.” Grace crossed her arms. “Bakker said that it was safe, so that’s
where we’re going.”

A door slammed and the vehicle jerked forward before the motion of the
truck eased them away from the hospital. The sounds of traffic could be heard.
Partlan held his breath as he counted the seconds until he could be certain
they were free of the Albireons’ reach. As long as no one checked what vehicles
had left the hospital’s loading dock, they should be safe.

About twenty minutes later the vehicle stopped. The back door of the
truck was rolled up and he could hear the mumbled complaints of their drivers.
He tightened his grip on the pistol and readied himself for a fight, but it
wasn’t necessary. They were moved off the vehicle, down an elevator, and rolled
to a stop, without anyone looking inside. He released his breath and waited
until no voices could be heard. He shifted in the container and tried to ease
his body upright.

“Ready?”

“My body feels like a pretzel.” Grace groaned. “I need to move.”

Partlan stretched his neck and then lifted the lid an inch. His eyes
scanned the room. There was no one in sight. He pushed back the plastic top of
the box and sat up with the gun ready as he completed his search of the room.
They were alone. He heaved himself out of the box and put his hand out for
Grace.

She took it and climbed out of the coffin. Her feet wobbled and she was
bent at the waist for a couple of seconds. She inhaled a couple of deep breaths
before straightening her body. She rolled her shoulders and planted her hands
on her hips and stretched her body up and backwards.

Partlan’s breath caught in his throat.

A jolt of desire hit him.

Never had he looked at a woman and felt a need to gather her close and
kiss her. His heart beat fast and an ache twisted his stomach. He longed to
hold her. His whole body was on alert and there was only one thing that he
craved.

Grace.

He clenched his jaw and forced his eyes away. Danger surrounded them and
his focus had to be on protecting Grace. The legends were right. The lure of
one’s pair bond was distracting and exhilarating at the same time. He
understood why a mate was forbidden to Hunters. He was a warrior, and nothing
would prevent him from defending Grace.

His eyes roamed the room. It looked to be a laboratory of sorts. There
were a couple of steel tables and with tubing connected to a machine. There
were also trays with forceps, needles, and what looked like cakes of powder and
brushes. It was a strange combination of instruments.

“What is this place?”

Grace went over to one of the tables and picked up a small clamp. “It
looks like we’re in the room where they do the embalming. We should be thankful
they didn’t send us straight to the crematorium.”

“Explain.”

“We’re in a funeral home.” Grace looked at him with an expectant look.

“I know.” He shook his head. “This is where you take the dead, but what
do you do with them?”

Grace moved away from the table filled with steel instruments. “We either
cremate the dead, which means we burn the bodies, or we bury them. If they are
to be buried, the body is preserved and this is where they do it.”

“Understood.” Partlan nodded. “On Cygnus, there is no space for burying
our dead.”

“So they’re cremated.”

“Unless we are in space. Then, the body is jettisoned out of the ship.”

Grace tilted her head. “If I believed in aliens that would make sense.”

“I do not lie.”

“I know.” Grace glanced around the room and then let out a small shriek.
“Why didn’t you tell me my hair was a mess?”

“I do not see a problem.”

She walked over to a small mirror on the back of a white cupboard. “I
look like I have a rat’s nest on my head.”

She shook her hair out of the bun and then yanked her fingers through it.
Sparks of static sizzled from her blonde locks. She was ruthless in dealing
with the flyaway hair and within seconds, she had it tamed, and clipped back
into a neat bun at the back of her head.

Partlan was fascinated by her efforts. Women did not pull their hair off
their faces on Cygnus. If their hair was long, it was meant to be shown, not
kept hidden in a bun. Human women did many things different from those on his
home planet, but this was the first time he had ever observed a woman this
closely. Now, he wanted to know everything about Grace.

“I need my gun back.” Grace held out her hand.

“As you wish.” Partlan handed the weapon to her. He would have preferred
to be armed, but he was proficient in hand to hand combat, and could easily
defend Grace if necessary.

“Let’s go.” She holstered her weapon. “The longer we wait, the better
chance we’ll run into someone coming to embalm the new arrivals.”

Partlan went to the door and glanced through the window at the top. The
hallway outside was empty. He motioned Grace to stay behind him. They made
their way down the hall and to another door. It led to a short rise of stairs
that opened up into a formal area with several rooms leading off it. There was
plush beige carpeting and numerous chairs spread around. Low murmurs were
coming from down the hall, but that was the only indication that others were in
the building. A glimmer of sunlight came through a door.

They headed outside.

They exited from a side entrance. They were momentarily blinded by
sunlight, but after a few seconds their eyes adjusted. There were manicured
lawns and gardens all around them. A lush oasis in the middle of the bustle and
noise of the city. The sound of traffic and the smell of exhaust filled the air
despite the illusion of peace. They walked across grass, around small ponds,
and headstones until they found themselves on a side street.

Cars and trucks were everywhere; horns were honking, tires screeching,
and people yelling. It was a relief after the hushed silence of the funeral
home. Partlan’s nose twitched at the smell of car fumes and tilted his head up
at the street lights to see if any cameras were directed at the sidewalk.
Everything seemed to be pointed at the main street and not along the side
streets. It looked safe.

“We need to move.”

“You look out of place with that hospital gown.” Grace grabbed his arm.
“There’s a small strip mall down the street. There has to be a store in there
that sells souvenir tee shirts. Anything would look better than what you have
on now.”

They walked toward the store at a brisk pace. Partlan surveyed the area
and the people as they approached the row of stores. Nothing looked out of
place. He refused to relax his vigilance until they were safe. Grace seemed to
think her office was that place. Experience had taught him that it was the
worst possible place for them.

The store offered a limited variety of shirts. Grace picked through a
rack of them, pulling out and rejecting at least ten before she decided on one.
It had a giant red heart on it, with the words
I
and
Hollywood before and after. He was certain he had seen others wearing similar
shirts, so he should blend in. She held it up to his chest and stood back to
assess it. Her nose scrunched up a bit before she sighed.

“It’ll have to do.” She took it to the cash register. “It’ll be small on
you, but there’s nothing in a larger size.”

When she’d paid for it, she handed the shirt to him. “Put it on.”

Partlan grinned. “You are well suited for the role of command.”

She had been walking toward the door, but she turned to look at him with
her eyes narrowed. “Is that a criticism?”

“No. It is admirable.” Partlan took her arm and led her out of the store
before he shrugged the shirt over his head. “On Cygnus, all women rule, but
here on Earth I have found that very few are used to it.”

Grace looked as if she were going to say something and then she shook her
head and walked in the opposite direction of the funeral home. When they had
gone several blocks, she stopped and looked at a bus sign.

“I don’t think we should risk a taxi. The bus will be safer.”

Partlan looked for cameras, but again everything seemed to be aimed at the
road. It was a few minutes wait before a bus with the number four pulled up and
stopped. They boarded and moved to the rear, where there were empty seats. One
bus change, and an hour later, they were let off on a street near the Federal
Building where Grace worked.

“Are you certain this is what you want to do?”

Partlan was getting an uneasy tightening in the pit of his stomach. His
inner warning system was seldom wrong. Danger was near. Grace stopped walking
and gnawed her lower lip. She looked at the building and then down the road.

“Bakker said it was safe, but I have a bad feeling about this.”

“We should not go in there.”

“Perhaps you’re right.” Grace’s teeth continued to worry her bottom lip.
“Let’s keep walking until we find a phone. I’ll call first.”

They continued past the headquarters. They came up to a large building
that housed several businesses and Grace climbed the stairs. It was all marble
and granite flooring in the foyer and they walked past a central bank of
elevators. Toward the rear of the building, there was one lone pay phone. Grace
rummaged in her pocket and pulled out a few coins. After she dialed, she
strummed her fingers on the edge of the large silver phone box until someone
answered.

“Bakker it’s me. Is it safe to come to the office?”

“Don’t do it.” Partlan could hear the warning from where he stood. He
leaned closer and Grace turned the phone so they both could listen.

“Those agency guys are everywhere.” Bakker lowered his voice. “I don’t
know who they are, but I don’t trust them. They want both of you now, not just
Partlan. Carter has been holed up with them in his office for the last hour.”

“That’s not good.”

“What on earth did you do to get these guys so angry?”

Grace glanced up at Partlan. “I wouldn’t hand over my prisoner. Something
wasn’t right about the men who came for him.”

“Well I’d lay low for a while, at least until things cool down.”

Grace hung the phone up. “This was a wasted trip. I don’t believe aliens
are chasing us. That’s a planned misinformation campaign by the government to
keep military advances a secret.”